Can Traditional Chinese Medicine cure vocal cord polyps?

Written by Zhang Jun
Otolaryngology
Updated on January 18, 2025
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Vocal cord polyps in traditional Chinese medicine are considered incurable because they are a benign tumor that must be surgically removed for a cure. The causes of vocal cord polyps generally include improper long-term voice use, shouting loudly, and excessive fatigue. For instance, teachers and singers are prone to developing vocal cord polyps. These polyps can cause persistent hoarseness in the patient's voice, which progressively worsens. Vocal cord polyps usually occur unilaterally. During an electronic laryngoscopy examination, an abnormal neoplasm can be observed on the anterior middle third of one vocal cord, typically pale white or pale red, soft, painless, and not prone to bleeding. For treatment, the patient needs to undergo local surgical removal to be cured. The surgery, which can be performed under a supporting laryngoscope, involves the excision of the vocal cord polyp, and recovery typically takes about a week before discharge from the hospital. After surgery, patients need to take good care of their vocal cords to prevent recurrence.

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Written by Xu Qing Tian
Otolaryngology
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Do vocal cord polyps cause a sore throat?

Patients with vocal cord polyps usually do not experience throat pain. The pathological basis for the occurrence of vocal cord polyps is edema and hyperplasia in the mucosal layer and Reinke's layer of the vocal cords, with hoarseness being the main symptom. The causes generally involve improper or excessive use of the voice, as well as harmful stimuli such as smoking and drinking, which lead to the proliferation of vocal cord polyps. The main treatments for vocal cord polyps currently include oral medications to clear the throat and benefit the voice, and surgical treatment. Surgical treatment primarily involves the endoscopic removal of the vocal cord polyps with support, and the patient must remain silent for three to four weeks post-surgery to allow the mucosal epithelium to recover, thereby improving the symptoms of hoarseness. (The use of medications should be under the guidance of a doctor.)

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Written by Deng Bang Yu
Otolaryngology
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Is vocal cord polyp surgery under general anesthesia painful?

Vocal cord polyps are benign space-occupying lesions located on the vocal cords, generally occurring unilaterally. Currently, treatment involves surgical removal under general anesthesia, utilizing a microscope and a supportive laryngoscope, or it can be performed using an endoscope; all these procedures require general anesthesia. After the general anesthesia, patients generally do not respond to pain, so the surgery is essentially painless, thus there is no need for excessive worry. After surgery, the vast majority of patients experience no pain. A minority of patients may have mild pain due to mucosal abrasions in the pharyngeal area, but most patients do not suffer pain.

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Written by Li Rui
Otolaryngology
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Do vocal cord polyps cause a sensation of a foreign body?

A small subset of patients may feel a foreign body sensation in their vocal cord system. Generally, if the polyp is small, it is unlikely to cause a feeling of a foreign body. Most commonly, it causes hoarseness. If the sensation of a foreign body in the throat is prominent, this condition is primarily considered to be caused by chronic pharyngitis. Of course, if the vocal cord polyp is large, especially if it is a pedunculated vocal cord polyp, movement of the vocal cords, such as during speaking or breathing, may cause a sensation of a foreign body in the throat. It can also cause hoarseness, and more severe cases may be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and difficulty breathing. If there are particularly severe and large bilateral vocal cord polyps, intense activity may lead to breathing difficulties and even cause suffocation due to impaired breathing.

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Written by Zhang Jun
Otolaryngology
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Can vocal cord polyps disappear on their own?

Vocal cord polyps cannot disappear on their own because they are a benign tumor. Without local surgical treatment, vocal cord polyps will continue to grow, causing the patient's hoarseness to worsen further. In severe cases, it can cause the patient to have breathing difficulties, leading to choking and even death. Vocal cord polyps are caused by improper use of the voice over a long period, such as yelling loudly or excessive tiredness, leading to pathological changes in the vocal cord mucosa. They can cause persistent hoarseness in patients. During an examination with an electronic laryngoscope, a smooth, light red or pale white abnormal neoplasm can be found on the anterior-middle third of one vocal cord. The vocal cord moves well, but does not close completely. In terms of treatment, patients need to undergo local surgical excision to heal. After surgery, it is important to protect the vocal cords by avoiding yelling loudly or speaking entirely, and complete recovery can generally be achieved within about a week.

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Written by Xu Qing Tian
Otolaryngology
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Are white vocal cord polyps cancerous?

Vocal cord polyps are mainly caused by overuse of the voice by patients, or by edema of the mucous membrane due to smoking, alcohol, and physical or chemical irritations, which gradually form vocal cord polyps. During an examination with an electronic laryngoscope, if whitening of the vocal cord mucosa or symptoms such as folds or erosion are found, it may indicate an early stage lesion of a tumor, or that a tumor has developed, which is often seen in cases of leukoplakia or squamous carcinoma of the vocal cords. If such conditions are discovered, it is important for the patient to take them seriously and promptly visit a hospital for a pathological biopsy to determine if there has been a pathological change in the vocal cords. If a pathological change is confirmed, it is necessary to promptly remove the pathological tissue through carbon dioxide laser surgery or support laryngoscopy surgery to achieve timely treatment.