Long-term efficacy of voice therapy in patients with voice problems after treatment of early glottic cancer.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of the present pilot study is to investigate whether the beneficial short-term effects of voice therapy in patients with voice problems after treatment of early glottic cancer as reported in our earlier study remain present on the long term. STUDY DESIGN In this prospective study, 12 patients, selected based on a screening questionnaire about voice problems and randomly assigned for treatment with voice therapy (vs no treatment), were evaluated with a mean of 13 months after finishing voice therapy to evaluate the long-term voice effects. METHODS Voice assessment consisted of the Voice Handicap Index (VHI) and acoustic analyses (percent jitter, percent shimmer, and noise-to-harmonics ratio). RESULTS Statistical analysis showed that the beneficial short-term effect on the mean VHI, percent jitter, and shimmer remained stable after more than a year of follow-up. CONCLUSIONS The present study provides initial evidence that the beneficial effect of voice therapy is not just a short-lived voice improvement but may result in a better voice for a period of at least 1 year. Future long-term randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm our findings.