[Pathophysiology, assessment and treatment of laryngopharyngeal reflux]

Laryngopharyngeal reflux is a prevalent, yet incompletely understood, ENT disorder accounting for 8 to 10% of patients consulting ENT. This clinical entity, increasingly considered as different from gastroesophageal reflux disease, may greatly affect the quality of life of patients through vocal and digestive symptoms. Debate persists concerning pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment. The aim of this review is to study the current literature about the pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment, and the outcomes in the follow-up.

[Transgender voice and communication treatment: Review of the literature]

Transgender persons constitute a small but growing population in ENT department: as a matter of fact, many voice parameters significantly contribute to the perception of gender (fundamental frequency, supraglottic resonance patterns, etc.). The persons involved in transition processes may therefore aim at changing their own voice properties, either by means of speech therapy or by medical intervention (hormonotherapy and/or surgery). The current voice assessment and outcome measures for this population before and after treatment are nevertheless still lacking validity. A well-accepted general framework including self-perception, subjective assessment of the practitioner and objective measures is not well documented. This review is therefore meant as a contribution to the development of a state of the art in the field.

Acoustical control of voice changes after surgery: an exploratory essay

In this preliminary study, the authors try to validate the use of a quantitative method based upon the use of Long Term Average Spectra (LTAS) and indices of spectral (dis)similarity. The whole spectral information is used and an evolution ratio is introduced. The technique has been tested on 5 patients with organic lesions of the vocal cords (oedema, polypoid degeneration, hyperkeratosis, polyp, pseudocyst). Each patient has been recorded three times: the day before surgery, one and 5 weeks later. The obtained values suggest good correlation between the index variability and the magnitude of clinical change. The values obtained from the quantitative technique turn out to be well correlated with the evolution of the patients' state.