Voice Therapy Method for Post-Thyroidectomy Syndrome

Objectives: This study aimed to demonstrate the effectiveness of Voice Therapy for Post- Thyroidectomy Syndrome (VT-PTS). The primary cause of PTS is the impairment of vertical movement in the larynx due to adhesion of the infrahyoid muscles or laryngeal-tracheal structures. Methods: The study included 12 participants (2 males and 10 females) diagnosed with PTS by a laryngologist. All participants reported subjective voice problems and were recommended for voice therapy by a speech-language pathologist. Participants were randomly assigned to the study. The VT-PTS program consisted of VT-1 (direct voice therapy conducted by a speech-language pathologist) and VT-2 (self-practice at home). Voice assessments included acoustic analyses (F0, jitter, shimmer, NHR, maximum pitch, minimum pitch, and pitch range) and subjective voice evaluations (K-VHI-10, K-VFI, and TVQ). Results: Acoustic analyses indicated significant increases in F0 (p=.014), maximum pitch (p<.001), and pitch range (p<.001) following VT-1 and VT-2. According to the Bonferroni correction, jitter (p=.046) and shimmer (p=.017) were not statistically significantly reduced. The K-VHI-10 (p=.003), K-VFI (p=.014), and TVQ (p=.002) also demonstrated significant decreases after VT-2. Conclusion: VT-PTS showed significant improvements in both objective and subjective voice evaluations, demonstrating its effectiveness in addressing voice problems in PTS. Notably, it was highly effective in addressing pitch-related problems, which are the primary voice problems in PTS. This study is valuable as it provides evidence- based support for speech-language pathologists in treating PTS in clinical fields. Future research should try non-face-to-face voice therapy and the development of applications to support post-surgical self-practice.