What are voice disorders?

Also known as: hoarseness, laryngitis.

Voice is the sound produced by the thin membranes in the voice box (larynx) vibrating as air passes over them during breathing; modified by movement of the lips, tongue, jaw and palate to produce speech. Voice disorders are a broad category of medical conditions (congenital and acquired; acute or chronic) that affect the loudness, pitch, quality or resonance of the voice.

Voice disorders are quite common and can occur for a number of reasons and range in severity.

---

Reviewed by: Jack Wolfsdorf, MD, FAAP

This page was last updated on: 1/29/2019 3:21:13 PM