What should be paid attention to with vocal cord polyps in daily life?

Written by Zhang Jun
Otolaryngology
Updated on May 19, 2025
00:00
00:00

Vocal cord polyps require careful protection of the vocal cords, as the common causes of vocal cord polyps are often due to patients frequently speaking loudly, over-shouting, improper use of their voice, or long-term spicy and irritating diet, and acid reflux irritation, resulting in diffuse congestion, edema, and proliferation of the vocal cord mucosa, leading to vocal cord polyps. These can cause the patient to experience persistent hoarseness, which progressively worsens. Patients need to visit a hospital for an examination with an electronic laryngoscope, which can reveal an abnormal neoplasm at the anterior middle third of one vocal cord, appearing pale white or pale red, soft, and painless. Vocal cord polyps require local surgical removal for treatment and can be cured. After surgery, patients also need to completely rest their voice for a week, and combined with nebulized inhalation therapy, improvement can gradually occur, avoiding recurrent attacks.

Other Voices

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Deng Bang Yu
Otolaryngology
41sec home-news-image

Do vocal cord polyps require a biopsy?

Vocal cord polyps are benign neoplasms located on the vocal cords, typically protruding from the surface or the free edge of the vocal cords. Therefore, the removal surgery for vocal cord polyps is generally performed under laryngoscopic and microscopic visualization. The procedure usually involves direct excision followed by pathological examination, and a biopsy is generally not conducted before the surgery. Thus, vocal cord polyps are typically treated through direct surgical removal without a pre-surgery biopsy. It is also important to avoid excessive misuse of the voice after the surgery to prevent recurrence of the vocal cord polyps.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Deng Bang Yu
Otolaryngology
49sec home-news-image

How long does it take to wake up from general anesthesia for vocal cord polyps?

Vocal cord polyps are common and frequently occurring clinical benign tumors located on the vocal cords. Clinically, the main treatment is the removal of the vocal cord polyps under a microscope-assisted laryngoscope, performed under general anesthesia. Currently, our control technique for general anesthesia is very refined, and the surgery for vocal cord polyps generally takes about 15 minutes. After these 15 minutes, our patients gradually regain consciousness. Therefore, patients undergoing general anesthesia for vocal cord polyp surgery can progressively wake up after the surgery is complete. This is achievable due to our current precise control techniques in anesthesia and medication management, allowing patients to awaken promptly after the surgery.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Xu Qing Tian
Otolaryngology
47sec home-news-image

The causes of recurrent vocal cord polyps

The recurrence of vocal cord polyps is primarily due to patients not taking care to protect their voice usage, improper voice use, and failing to quit bad habits such as smoking and drinking. The main cause of vocal cord polyps is edema in the Reinke's layer of the vocal cord mucosa, which leads to the proliferation of the surface mucosa. The main symptom in patients is a hoarse voice. After undergoing support laryngoscopy and surgical removal of the vocal cord polyps, patients are required to refrain from speaking for three to four weeks to allow the vocal cord mucosa to recover and heal. If patients do not take care of their voice during this period, there is a possibility of recurrence of the vocal cord polyps.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Xu Qing Tian
Otolaryngology
51sec home-news-image

Is the recurrence rate of vocal cord polyps high?

Vocal cord polyps are a common and frequently occurring condition in otolaryngology. Usually, if patients strictly protect their voice after undergoing vocal cord polyp surgery, the recurrence rate is generally low. However, patients in professions such as teaching, sales, and singing, who often strain their voices, may experience recurrence of vocal cord polyps. The formation of vocal cord polyps is due to the rupture of capillaries and edema in the vocal cord mucosa, leading to neoplasm proliferation. An electronic laryngoscopy can be used to clearly diagnose the disease. Patients with vocal cord polyps should be advised to strictly rest their voice and avoid excessive vocal strain. Surgical removal of the vocal cord polyps is necessary to cure the condition.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Deng Bang Yu
Otolaryngology
51sec home-news-image

Why do vocal cord polyps bleed?

Vocal cord polyps are a cold-natured and space-occupying lesion located on the vocal cords, usually occurring unilaterally. Clinically, they primarily present as hoarseness. Examination can reveal a polyp-like neoplasm protruding from the surface of one vocal cord. There are two reasons for bleeding in vocal cord polyps. One is intense coughing or other mechanical injuries that cause bleeding on the surface of the polyp, due to damage to the vocal cord mucosa, among other factors. The second is that these polyps are hemorrhagic, possessing a rich supply of blood vessels, referred to as hemorrhagic polyps, which are prone to bleeding. Another scenario is post-surgical bleeding due to mucosal damage, friction, or other factors following surgery for vocal cord polyps, primarily involving these three factors.