Unilateral vocal fold paralysis (UVFP) is a common cause of incomplete glottic closure, leading to significant somatic and social disabilities. Office-based autologous fat injection laryngoplasty (AFIL) has been proposed as an effective treatment for glottic insufficiency but has not been well-studied for UVFP. We enrolled 23 patients who underwent office-based structural AFIL due to unilateral vocal paralysis at our institution between February 2021 and January 2022. In the procedure, autologous fat was harvested and injected into the vocal fold under the guidance of flexible digital endoscopy for structural fat grafting. The voice handicap index-10 (VHI-10) score and perceptual voice measurements were collected before the operation, 2 weeks postoperatively, and 3 months postoperatively. Twenty-two patients were followed-up for at least 3 months. The VHI-10 score improved significantly from 29.65 ± 8.52 preoperatively to 11.74 ± 7.42 at 2 weeks (p < 0.0001) and 5.36 ± 6.67 at 3 months (p < 0.0001). Significant improvements in grades of dysphonia (p < 0.0001), breathiness (p < 0.0001), and asthenia (p = 0.004) were also noted at 3 months postoperatively when perceptual measurements were investigated. Office-based structural AFIL is an effective treatment for improving voice-related disability for UVFP patients.
Keywords: autologous fat; injection laryngoplasty; office-based; unilateral vocal paralysis.