The Occurrence of Laryngeal Pathologies in a Treatment-Seeking Pediatric Population

Anke Adriaansen; Kristiane Van Lierde; Iris Meerschman; Sofie Claeys; Evelien D'haeseleer

doi:10.1016/j.jvoice.2023.07.001

The Occurrence of Laryngeal Pathologies in a Treatment-Seeking Pediatric Population

J Voice. 2023 Jul 29:S0892-1997(23)00210-2. doi: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2023.07.001. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Anke Adriaansen¹, Kristiane Van Lierde², Iris Meerschman³, Sofie Claeys⁴, Evelien D'haeseleer⁵

Affiliations

¹ Center for Speech and Language Sciences (CESLAS), Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. Electronic address: anke.adriaansen@ugent.be.
² Center for Speech and Language Sciences (CESLAS), Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South-Africa. Electronic address: kristiane.vanlierde@ugent.be.
³ Center for Speech and Language Sciences (CESLAS), Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. Electronic address: iris.meerschman@ugent.be.
⁴ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium. Electronic address: Sem.Claeys@UGent.be.
⁵ Center for Speech and Language Sciences (CESLAS), Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium; Royal Conservatory Brussels, Musical Department, Brussels, Belgium. Electronic address: evelien.dhaeseleer@ugent.be.

PMID: 37524580
DOI: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2023.07.001

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to 1) describe the age- and sex-specific occurrence of laryngeal pathologies in a treatment-seeking pediatric population in the voice unit of Ghent University Hospital, Belgium, and 2) describe this population in terms of vocal parameters, vocal complaints, influencing factors, and treatment history and recommendation.

Study design: Retrospective, observational study.

Methods: All patient records were analyzed for children (0-18 years) who consulted the ear, nose, and throat department of Ghent University Hospital for the first time between July 2015 and June 2021 with complaints of dysphonia. In total, 103 children (66 males, 37 females) with a mean age of 10.01 years (SD: 3.4, range 3.93-17.96) were included in this study. Laryngeal pathology was diagnosed using a flexible videolaryngo(strobo)scopy. The influence of age and sex on laryngeal etiology (organic/functional voice disorder) was examined using a Welch-modified t test and a Fisher's exact test, respectively.

Results: Organic lesions were observed in 77.7% of the participants, with vocal fold nodules (VFNs) being the most common diagnosis (66.0%). A functional voice disorder was diagnosed in 22.3% of the children. Children with a functional voice disorder are significantly older than children with an organic voice disorder. There was no statistically significant difference between males and females in laryngeal etiology. Mean dysphonia severity index was -2.7 (SD: 3.2, range -9.3 to +3.7), the mean acoustic voice quality index 4.70 (SD: 1.5, range 2.35-8.27), and the mean pediatric voice handicap index 29.8 (SD: 13.6, range 5-60). The occurrence of vocal misuse was mentioned in 80.6% of the patient records.

Conclusion: Organic voice disorders, especially VFNs, are predominant in treatment-seeking children with dysphonia. Functional voice disorders become more common with increasing age during childhood. A disordered vocal quality, reduced vocal capabilities and reduced voice-related quality of life were found.

Keywords: Children; Laryngoscopy; Prevalence; Voice disorders.