Patient-Centered Care in Vocal Fold Paralysis: What Really Matters?

Purpose of Review: Literature review of patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures after surgical intervention for unilateral vocal fold paralysis (UVFP). Recent Findings: The majority of studies focus on resolution of dysphonia, dyspnea, and dysphagia, while few studies focus on psychosocial dimensions. Overall, voice-related PRO measures improve after all interventions; however, they do not normalize to pre-UVFP levels, as issues remain with singing, loud speech, and high-vocal-demand activities. All voice-related PRO measures have comparable improvement across all interventions. Dyspnea symptoms are common after UVFP; however, studies evaluating dyspnea-related PRO measures are not. Symptoms improve after interventions, but do not fully resolve in activities with high physical demand. All dysphagia-related PRO measures are associated with improvement after all types of interventions. Patient-reported symptoms, diet advancement, and decline in prevalence of aspiration are achieved in the majority of patients, though persistent diet modification and compensatory strategies continue to be employed by most. Summary: UVFP interventions result in meaningful patient-reported improvements in voice, breathing, and swallow aspects, though do not normalize to pre-UVFP levels. Further PRO measure studies are needed to improve patient-centered care for UVFP.