Larynx

This is a prospective double blinded randomized crossover controlled trial aiming at validating the measurement of laryngopharyngeal mechanosensitivity in patients with suspected OSA using a recently developed laryngopharyngeal endoscopic esthesiometer and rangefinder (LPEER). Subjects will be recruited from patients with suspected OSA referred for baseline polysomnography to a university hospital sleep laboratory. Intra- and inter-rater reliability will be evaluated using the Bland-Altman's limits of agreement plot, the intraclass correlation coefficient, and the Pearson or Spearman correlation coefficient, depending on the distribution of the variables. Diagnostic accuracy will be evaluate plotting Receiver-operating-characteristic-curves (ROC-curves) using as reference standard basal polysomnogram. The sensory threshold values for patients with mild, moderate, and severe OSA, will be determined and compared using ANOVA or Kruskal Wallis test, depending on the distribution of the variables.

The goal of this cross-sectional study is to investigate the prevalence of Exercise Induced Laryngeal Obstruction (EILO) in children with asthma. The hypothesis is that the prevalence will be around 15%, which is higher than the prevalence of 5-8% among the general adolescent population. This is based on the increased prevalence of EILO among adult asthmatics. Participants who are referred for an Exercise Challenge Test will perform an additional Continuous Laryngoscopy during Exercise Test with expiratory FEV1 curves, and fill in the Borg scale for dyspnea, Asthma Control Test, EILODI questionnaire and DISCO-RC questionnaire.

The purpose of this study is to measure the short- and long-term voice outcome and outcome predictors of glottoplasty, cricothyroid approximation, thyroplasty, and chondrolaryngoplasty using a prospective non-randomized controlled trial and a multidimensional voice assessment protocol. Secondly, a laryngeal magnetic resonance imaging protocol will be developed to measure pre- and postoperative anatomical factors and compare them with the acoustic changes.