CO₂ laser subtotal arytenoidectomy and posterior true and false cordotomy in the treatment of post-thyroidectomy bilateral laryngeal fixation in adduction

Abstract

A total of 39 patients with bilateral post-thyroidectomy vocal cord paralysis in adduction underwent CO₂ laser subtotal arytenoidectomies with removal of the posterior third of the false and true vocal cords. Total airway resistance (R _tot) evaluated before and 4–10 months after surgery showed marked preoperative impairment before and significant improvement after surgery (P < 0.05). In five patients revision surgery was performed due to a progressive impairment of respiratory function. A variable degree of voice breathiness was observed after surgery; the maximum phonation time mean values were lower than normal and peak sound pressure levels 63 ± 5 dB. In three cases aspiration was present in the first postoperative days, but swallowing dysfunctions disappeared within 1 week. Subtotal arytenoidectomy with removal of the posterior third of the true and false vocal folds was found to be a satisfactory surgical treatment for bilateral vocal cord paralysis in adduction. However, further research is still needed to define the surgical procedure able to balance respiratory, phonatory and sphincteric functions optimally.