• Home
  • Practice Focus
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
    • How I Do It
    • TRIO Best Practices
  • Business of Medicine
    • Health Policy
    • Legal Matters
    • Practice Management
    • Tech Talk
    • AI
  • Literature Reviews
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Career
    • Medical Education
    • Professional Development
    • Resident Focus
  • ENT Perspectives
    • ENT Expressions
    • Everyday Ethics
    • From TRIO
    • The Great Debate
    • Letter From the Editor
    • Rx: Wellness
    • The Voice
    • Viewpoint
  • TRIO Resources
    • Triological Society
    • The Laryngoscope
    • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
    • TRIO Combined Sections Meetings
    • COSM
    • Related Otolaryngology Events
  • Search

Well Tuned: Maintenance of the Professional Voice: Part 1 of 2

by Mary Beth Nierengarten • May 1, 2007

  • Tweet
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
Print-Friendly Version

Frank Sinatra purportedly said of Rosemary Clooney that she was able to hit a note right in its center.1 Repeatedly hitting the notes right to a singer is what repeatedly achieving successful suturing and splicing is to a surgeon-both exemplify expertise in a given craft long honed through hours of training, practice, and performance. Critical to such talent is maintenance of the instrument on which that talent relies-for the surgeon, the hands; for the singer, the voice.

You Might Also Like

  • Diagnosis and Treatment of Vocal Problems In Professional Voice Users: Part 2 of 2
  • Do Vitamin B12 Injections Lead to Improvement When Treating Voice-Related Symptoms in Professional Singers?
  • Professional Voice Care May Reduce Vocal Disorders in Children
  • The Voice Lift: Should vocal fold surgery be considered a cosmetic procedure?
Explore This Issue
May 2007

For people who rely on their voice for their craft and profession-such as singers, actors, politicians, teachers, and preachers-maintenance of vocal quality is fundamental to a successful and enduring career. The issues of how to maintain good voice quality and how to prevent and treat vocal problems in the professional voice user have given rise to a virtual cottage industry within the otolaryngological profession. Several centers are now available that are devoted to professional voice care. Since 1972 the Voice Foundation (www.voicefoundation.org ), the oldest organization in the world devoted to medical research and education on the voice, has held an annual symposium on the care of the professional voice.

Common Problems for the Professional Voice

Answering your question about common voice problems [in the professional voice] is not as easy as you may think, said Robert T. Sataloff, MD, Chairman of the Philadelphia Voice Center (www.phillyent.com/practice/voicecenter.php ), one of the first centers dedicated to care of the professional voice. Professional voice users, such as singers and actors, are professional athletes. They place great demand not only on their voices, but also their bodies, he continued.

According to Dr. Sataloff-who is also Chairman of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and Associate Dean at Drexel University College of Medicine, a leading expert in caring for the professional voice who has written extensively on the topic, as well as a trained professional operatic singer-these demands take a toll not only on the voice but also on overall health, making professional voice users predisposed to such voice injuries as vocal fold hemorrhages, tears, cysts, and nodules, as well as a number of health problems. Among these, he said, is the high prevalence of laryngopharyngeal reflux. As many as 80 percent of professional voice patients have reflux in addition to-and possibly aggravating-the primary problem for which they seek medical attention, he said, adding that hormonal imbalances, orthopedic injuries that affect posture, and respiratory conditions such as asthma can undermine effective voice use, limit performance ability, and lead to injury.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 | Single Page

Filed Under: Articles, Features, Practice Management Issue: May 2007

You Might Also Like:

  • Diagnosis and Treatment of Vocal Problems In Professional Voice Users: Part 2 of 2
  • Do Vitamin B12 Injections Lead to Improvement When Treating Voice-Related Symptoms in Professional Singers?
  • Professional Voice Care May Reduce Vocal Disorders in Children
  • The Voice Lift: Should vocal fold surgery be considered a cosmetic procedure?

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

The Triological SocietyENTtoday is a publication of The Triological Society.

Polls

Have you invented or patented something that betters the field of otolaryngology?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive

Top Articles for Residents

  • Applications Open for Resident Members of ENTtoday Edit Board
  • How To Provide Helpful Feedback To Residents
  • Call for Resident Bowl Questions
  • New Standardized Otolaryngology Curriculum Launching July 1 Should Be Valuable Resource For Physicians Around The World
  • Do Training Programs Give Otolaryngology Residents the Necessary Tools to Do Productive Research?
  • Popular this Week
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
    • Otolaryngologists as Entrepreneurs: Transforming Patient Care And Practice

    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment

    • Rating Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Severity: How Do Two Common Instruments Compare?

    • Physician Handwriting: A Potentially Powerful Healing Tool

    • Continued Discussion And Engagement Are Essential To How Otolaryngologists Are Championing DEI Initiatives In Medicine

    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment

    • Rating Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Severity: How Do Two Common Instruments Compare?

    • Is Middle Ear Pressure Affected by Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Use?

    • Otolaryngologists Are Still Debating the Effectiveness of Tongue Tie Treatment

    • Complications for When Physicians Change a Maiden Name

    • Physician Handwriting: A Potentially Powerful Healing Tool
    • Leaky Pipes—Time to Focus on Our Foundations
    • You Are Among Friends: The Value Of Being In A Group
    • How To: Full Endoscopic Procedures of Total Parotidectomy
    • How To: Does Intralesional Steroid Injection Effectively Mitigate Vocal Fold Scarring in a Rabbit Model?

Follow Us

  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • The Triological Society
  • The Laryngoscope
  • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Cookies

Wiley

Copyright © 2025 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved, including rights for text and data mining and training of artificial technologies or similar technologies. ISSN 1559-4939