BOTULINUM TOXIN INJECTION FOR ADDUCTOR SPASTIC DYSPHONIA - PATIENT SELF-RATINGS OF VOICE AND PHONATORY EFFORT AFTER 3 SUCCESSIVE INJECTIONS

Ten patients (aged 35 to 70 years) with neurologic adductor spastic dy sphonia rated themselves on a 7-point scale of severity for degree of voice improvement and physical effort after a series of three injectio ns of botulinum toxin. Symptoms were noticeably reduced 24 and 48 hour s after injection; this improvement was followed by considerable fluct uations in voice quality and phonatory effort. With successive injecti ons, patients differed in their post-injection experiences, the time r equired to reach optimal voice, and the total duration of benefit. The study shows that the course of voice change after botulinum toxin inj ection is not predictable, uniform, or equal among patients with spast ic dysphonia.