Objectives (1) Demonstrate true vocal fold (TVF) tracking software (AGATI [Automated Glottic Action Tracking by artificial Intelligence]) as a quantitative assessment of unilateral vocal fold paralysis (UVFP) in a large patient cohort. (2) Correlate patient-reported metrics with AGATI measurements of TVF anterior glottic angles, before and after procedural intervention. Study Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting Academic medical center. Methods AGATI was used to analyze videolaryngoscopy from healthy adults (n = 72) and patients with UVFP (n = 70). Minimum, 3rd percentile, 97th percentile, and maximum anterior glottic angles (AGAs) were computed for each patient. In patients with UVFP, patient-reported outcomes (Voice Handicap Index 10, Dyspnea Index, and Eating Assessment Tool 10) were assessed, before and after procedural intervention (injection or medialization laryngoplasty). A receiver operating characteristic curve for the logistic fit of paralysis vs control group was used to determine AGA cutoff values for defining UVFP. Results Mean (SD) 3rd percentile AGA (in degrees) was 2.67 (3.21) in control and 5.64 (5.42) in patients with UVFP ( P < .001); mean (SD) 97th percentile AGA was 57.08 (11.14) in control and 42.59 (12.37) in patients with UVFP ( P < .001). For patients with UVFP who underwent procedural intervention, the mean 97th percentile AGA decreased by 5 degrees from pre- to postprocedure ( P = .026). The difference between the 97th and 3rd percentile AGA predicted UVFP with 77% sensitivity and 92% specificity ( P < .0001). There was no correlation between AGA measurements and patient-reported outcome scores. Conclusions AGATI demonstrated a difference in AGA measurements between paralysis and control patients. AGATI can predict UVFP with 77% sensitivity and 92% specificity.

Objectives/Hypothesis Neurogenic cough affects 11% of Americans and causes significant detriment to quality of life. With the advent of novel therapies, the objective of this review is to determine how procedural therapies (e.g., superior laryngeal nerve block) compare to other established pharmacologic and non‐pharmacologic treatments for neurogenic cough. Methods With the assistance of a medical librarian, a systematic review was performed using PICOS (patients, interventions, comparator, outcome, study design) format: adults with neurogenic cough receiving any pharmacologic or non‐pharmacologic treatment for neurogenic cough compared to adults with neurogenic cough receiving any other relevant interventions, or treated as single cohorts, assessed with cough‐specific quality of life outcomes, in all study designs and case series with ≥ 10 cases. Case reports, review articles, non‐human studies, non‐English language articles, and unavailable full‐text articles were excluded. Results There were 2408 patients with neurogenic cough in this review, treated with medical therapy (77%), speech therapy (19%), both medical and speech therapy (1%), and procedural therapy (3%). The included studies ranged from low to intermediate quality. Overall, most interventions demonstrated successful improvement in cough. However, the heterogeneity of included study designs precluded direct comparisons between intervention types. Conclusion This meta‐analysis compared various treatments for neurogenic cough. Procedural therapy should be considered in the armamentarium of neurogenic cough treatments, particularly in patients refractory to, or intolerant of, the side effects of medical therapy. Lastly, this review illuminates key areas for improving neurogenic cough diagnosis, such as strict adherence to diagnostic and treatment guidelines, sophisticated reflux testing, and standardized, consistent outcome reporting. Laryngoscope, 132:107–123, 2022

Objective The Dyspnea Index (DI) is a validated patient‐reported outcome (PRO) instrument that has been used in the management of laryngotracheal stenosis (LTS). The minimal clinically important difference (MCID) is an established concept to help determine the change in a PRO instrument that reflects meaningful change for the patient. It is not known what change in the DI is of clinical significance in airway surgery. This study aims to determine the MCID for the DI in patients undergoing surgical treatment for LTS. Methods This is a prospective cohort study in which 26 patients with LTS completed the DI (score range 0 to 40) before and 6 to 8 weeks postoperatively, in addition to a Global Ratings Change Questionnaire (GRCQ), scored from −7 to +7, at the postoperative interval. A hypothesis test was carried out to test the association between GRCQ and change in DI. The MCID for change in DI was determined using anchor‐based analysis. Results Overall mean change in DI was −11, and mean change in GRCQ was +5. Change in DI scores were significantly different among the improvement and no improvement groups (P value <0.002). Area under the receiver operating curve was 0.92, demonstrating high discriminatory ability of the change in DI score. A change of −4 was determined to be the threshold that discriminated between significant improvement and no improvement. Conclusion A decrease of 4 in the DI can be considered as the MCID for patients with LTS after surgical treatment. Level of Evidence 2b Laryngoscope, 130:1775–1779, 2020

Objective Anxiety and depression have demonstrated a positive correlation with vocal handicap among patients with benign causes of dysphonia. Our objective is to explore differences in initial Vocal Handicap Index–10 (VHI-10) scores between patients with a mental health history of anxiety or depression and those without. Study Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting Demographic data, diagnoses, and initial VHI-10 scores were collected for patients presenting with dysphonia to 2 tertiary laryngology clinics. Methods A Kruskal-Wallis test and subsequent Mann-Whitney U test for pairwise comparisons were used to compare distribution of VHI-10 scores among patients with anxiety, depression, anxiety and depression, and no such conditions. Bonferroni correction was used to control for multiple comparisons. Robust regression was used for multivariable analysis. Results A total of 620 cases of benign dysphonia were analyzed. Forty-two percent of the patient cohort had a preexisting diagnosis of anxiety (n = 121, 20%), depression (n = 64, 10%), or anxiety and depression (n = 74, 12%). VHI-10 scores were higher in patients with depression than in those without anxiety or depression (median difference, 4 [95% CI, 1-8]; P = .005) but did not differ significantly among the other groups. The effects of depression and anxiety status on initial VHI-10 scores among the causes of benign dysphonia varied. Conclusions Patients with a history of depression who presented with dysphonia had worse vocal handicap than those without anxiety/depression history. Future studies may clarify how optimization of anxiety and depression can affect patient-reported vocal handicap.

Background: The prevalence of opioid abuse has become epidemic in the United States. Microdirect laryngoscopy (MDL) is a common otolaryngological procedure, yet prescribing practices for opioids following this operation are not well characterized. Objective: To characterize current opioid-prescribing patterns among otolaryngologists performing MDL. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of otolaryngologists at a national laryngology meeting. Results: Fifty-eight of 205 physician registrants (response rate 28%) completed the survey. Fifty-nine percent of respondents were fellowship-trained in laryngology. Respondents performed an average of 13.3 MDLs per month. Thirty-four percent of surgeons prescribe opioids for over two-thirds of their MDLs, while only 7% of surgeons never prescribe opioids. Eighty-eight percent of surgeons prescribed a combination opioid and acetaminophen compound, hydrocodone being the most common opioid component. Many surgeons prescribe non-opioid analgesics as well, with 70% and 84% of surgeons recommending acetaminophen and ibuprofen after MDL respectively. When opioids were prescribed, patient preference, difficult exposure and history of opioid use were the most influential patient factors. Concerns of opioid abuse, the physician role in the opioid crisis, and literature about postoperative non-opioid analgesia were also underlying themes in influencing opioid prescription patterns after MDL. Conclusions: In this study, over 90% of practicing physicians surveyed are prescribing opioids after MDL, though many are also prescribing non-opioid analgesia as well. Further studies should be completed to investigate the needs of patients following MDL in order to allow physicians to selectively and appropriately prescribe opioid analgesia postoperatively.