What is Dysphonia (hoarse voice)?
Dysphonia is a voice that is described as being hoarse, rough or strained. It may affect voice and pitch as well. It is caused by inflammation or damage to the vocal cords, but may also be due to issues with airflow from the lungs or if there are abnormalities in the structure of the throat.
It may be caused by any number of minor health conditions, including a common cold or bacterial infection.
However, it may also be a long-term feature of a genetic disease or syndrome.
Understanding throat and voice-related symptoms and features
Symptoms may affect multiple parts of the body. Understanding which part of the body a symptom affects, can help us to better understand the potential underlying causes of a symptom, including a rare disease or genetic syndrome.
The throat is an essential part of the body as it transports food, liquid and air. It is also important for its role in connecting the nose and mouth to the windpipe and lungs for breathing, and it connects them to the esophagus which is essential for eating. The throat also contains the vocal cords responsible for speech.
Symptoms affecting the throat and voice can not for the most part be seen with the naked eye. Although diagnosing a throat and voice-related symptom may involve different tests and assessments, both subjective and objective.
Symptoms relating to the throat may affect its structure and its different functions: including its respiratory, feeding and vocal functions.
What should I do next?
In some instances, a hoarse voice may be one of the features of a rare disease or genetic syndrome. To find out if someone with Dysphonia, may be due to a genetic syndrome, it is important to have a consultation and evaluation with a clinical genetic specialist. Specialists may also suggest specific genetic testing or other types of tests to help reach a diagnosis. FDNA’s AI technology can help speed up the diagnostic process by analyzing facial features and other health information.