Voice Therapy for Benign Vocal Cord Lesions

Voice therapy helps you to modify speech patterns that may be putting stress on your vocal cords, which can lead to benign vocal cord lesions. First, NYU Langone speech pathologists analyze your voice and identify these patterns. Our speech pathologists then create a personalized therapy program tailored to your individual speech patterns and vocal habits, including simple exercises that can improve the quality and sound of your voice.

Benign vocal cord lesions can cause symptoms of inflammation, such as swelling, irritation, and pain. Making changes in the way you speak may reduce the size of a polyp, cyst, or nodule, and exercises can improve the way you use your voice in order to compensate for the presence of scar tissue.

For example, a simple exercise like a lip trill—in which you exhale while relaxing your lips, allowing them to vibrate freely—can help you make subtle changes in the way you use your voice, reducing pressure on the vocal cords and giving them a chance to heal. NYU Langone speech pathologists can instruct you in these techniques that, over time, can help you retrain the way you speak, reducing stress on the vocal cords and improving the way the voice sounds.

Voice therapy is most effective when a vocal cord lesion is in the early stages of development. An early diagnosis increases the possibility that voice therapy alone can alleviate your symptoms.