J Korean Soc Laryngol Phoniatr Logoped.  2025 Apr;36(1):12-18. 10.22469/jkslp.2025.36.1.12.

A Pilot Study on Voice Therapy Methods for Voice Recovery in Post-Thyroidectomy Syndrome

• Kim JS
• Jung HJ

• KMID: 2567433
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.22469/jkslp.2025.36.1.12

Abstract

Background and Objectives
Post-thyroidectomy syndrome (PTS) refers to voice problems that occur after thyroidectomy without laryngeal nerve injury, often affecting vocal function and quality of life. This study aims to develop and evaluate a tailored voice therapy program for PTS and assess its effectiveness through both objective and subjective voice measures. Materials and Method This study included patients who underwent thyroidectomy. The therapy group consisted of seven female patients diagnosed with PTS by a laryngologist 2 weeks postoperatively. The control group was matched for age, sex, and surgical extent. Voice evaluation included both objective acoustic analysis and subjective evaluations using the Korean Voice Handicap Index-10 (K-VHI-10) and the Korean Voice Fatigue Index (K-VFI). The therapy program incorporated neck exercises and semi-occluded vocal tract exercises (SOVTE). The voice therapy program consisted of a single 40-minute direct session provided by a speech-language pathologist, followed by a 2-week period of patient-performed home exercises.
Results
The therapy group showed significant improvements in minimum pitch (p=0.035) and pitch range (p=0.013) compared to the control group. Additionally, subjective evaluations revealed significantly lower K-VHI-10 (p=0.003) and K-VFI (p=0.040) scores in the therapy group than in the control group.
Conclusion
The voice therapy program for PTS effectively improved pitch-related problems and subjective voice outcomes. These findings highlight the importance of early voice therapy intervention in optimizing postoperative voice recovery. Further research with larger sample sizes is needed to validate these results and refine treatment protocols.

Keyword

Post-thyroidectomy syndrome; Thyroidectomy; Voice therapy; 갑상선 술 후 증후군; 갑상선 절제술; 음성치료