What muscles affect the voice?

What muscles affect the voice?

The ability to produce voice starts with airflow from the lungs, which is coordinated by the action of the diaphragm and abdominal and chest muscles. The voice box (larynx) and vocal folds (sometimes called vocal cords) comprise the vibratory system of the voice mechanism.

What muscles make vocal folds?

The innermost layer is the thyroarytenoid (a.k.a. vocalis) muscle, which runs the entire length of the vocal fold, from the thyroid cartilage to the arytenoid cartilage. The thyroarytenoid muscle is the most dense portion of the vocal fold.

How does muscle tension dysphonia occur?

Muscle tension dysphonia (MTD) is one of the most common voice disorders. It occurs when the muscles around the larynx (voice box) are so tight during speaking that the voice box does not work efficiently. MTD is more prevalent among people in the 40- to 50-year-old age group, especially women.

Does muscle tension dysphonia affect swallowing?

MTD can cause hoarseness, decreased vocal flexibility, increased vocal fatigue, increased vocal effort, and discomfort/pain in your throat. In some instances, it can feel like something is stuck in your throat and may make swallowing difficult.

What does muscle tension dysphonia look like?

MTD can have a wide variety of symptoms. Individuals may have a rough, hoarse, gravelly, raspy, weak, breathy, airy like a whisper, strained, pressed, squeezed, tight or tense voice. A person with MTD may complain of a tired voice or experience pain when speaking.

Do muscle relaxers help muscle tension dysphonia?

Voice therapy to retrain the overused, tense muscles is by far the most effective way to treat MTD. Occasionally, patients have muscles that are so tight that muscle relaxants, sometimes even botox injections are helpful to get the muscle to relax enough to allow the patient to benefit from voice therapy.

What are the muscles of the throat?

These muscles include the omohyoid, sternohyoid, and sternothyroid muscles (ansa cervicalis), and the thyrohyoid muscle (CN XII). [17] The longitudinal pharyngeal muscles function to condense and expand the pharynx as well as help elevate the pharynx and larynx during swallowing.

What muscle relaxes the vocal cords?

Thyroarytenoid muscle
Thyroarytenoid muscle It inserts into the anterolateral surface of arytenoid cartilage, just as the posterior and lateral cricoarytenoid muscles do. As for function, the muscle shortens and relaxes the vocal cords.

How do I know if I have muscle tension dysphonia?

The most common symptoms of muscle tension dysphonia include: Voice that sounds rough, hoarse, gravelly or raspy. Voice that sounds weak, breathy, airy or is only a whisper. Voice that sounds strained, pressed, squeezed, tight or tense.

What causes vocal cord tension?

It may be triggered by illness, allergies, reflux, other irritants, or by increased vocal demand. In some instances, the cause may be related to underlying stress and anxiety or a significant emotional event.

How do you overcome muscle tension dysphonia?

Voice therapy is the gold standard treatment for primary MTD. There are no other treatments that can restore the muscle balance in the vocal mechanism. Voice therapy helps the patient improve vocal symptoms through exercises and techniques geared at improving the way the body (muscles, lungs etc.)