Laryngeal Breathing Disorders

 Paradoxical Vocal fold Motion (PVFM) often referred to as vocal cord dysfunction, and most recently called Inducible laryngeal obstruction (ILO) is a laryngeal breathing disorder that impacts a person’s ability to breathe normally. During normal breathing the vocal folds open to allow air to pass through to the lungs. During an ILO episode the vocal folds may be partially or completely closed which can be very frightening. When breathing symptoms occur during exercise, it is called Exercise induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO).  Symptoms of ILO and EILO may include sudden onset of feeling like the throat is tight, difficulty taking a complete breath, and or develop stridor (noisy breathing). Common triggers include environmental irritants such as smoke, dust, strong scents, weather changes (hot or cold temperatures) A comprehensive voice assessment including videostroboscopy is recommended to examine patterns of vocal fold motion during breathing and in a variety of voice tasks.

Primary management of laryngeal breathing disorders focuses on laryngeal desensitization to retrain the larynx to respond normally to usual triggers. Typical interventions include manual treatment (e.g., myofascial release and or laryngeal massage), laryngeal relaxation exercises, breathing retraining exercises , and voice exercises.