Spasmodic Dysphonia / Botox

Spasmodic dysphonia (SD), a focal form of dystonia, is a neurological voice disorder that involves involuntary "spasms" of the vocal cords causing interruptions of speech and affecting the voice quality. SD can cause the voice to break up or to have a tight, strained, or strangled quality.

Botulinum Toxin (Botox) - Local injections of botulinum toxin (Botox) into the vocal cord muscles have proven to be the most effective treatment for spasmodic dysphonia. The treatment weakens the vocal muscles so that spasms are greatly diminished and speech is greatly improved. The treatment can also reduce the breathiness and help decrease the effort required to speak.

People with the more common adductor form of spasmodic dysphonia typically respond better to botulinum toxin injections than those persons with the abductor form of spasmodic dysphonia. One reason for this is that the muscles affected in abductor are located behind the larynx, making injections more difficult.

The benefits of botulinum toxin injections vary for each individual depending on injection technique, suboptimal dosing, and patient biology, but results can last anywhere from six weeks to six months.

The two most common side effects are dysphagia, difficulty in swallowing, and an increase breathiness of voice. Both usually only last from 6 to 12 days after the injection. Adjusting the dose by using the lowest possible effective dose should prevent breathy after-effects of botulinum toxin injections. Read more about treatment of Spasmodic dysphonia at http://www.dysphonia.org/nsda/treatment/.

The above information was taken from the National Spasmodic Dysphonia Association web site.  Another site that may provide helpful information is the National Institutes of Health site linked here.