Vocal Cord Paralysis After Surgery for Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm

To determine the incidence, etiology, prognosis, and treatment of vocal cord paralysis (VCP) after surgery for thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA). Retrospective study performed between 1989 and 1995. Academic, tertiary care, referral medical center. Seventy-one TAA patients underwent surgery at the Kameda Medical Center between 1989 and 1995. Sixty-two of 71 patients were examined postoperatively for voice quality. Twenty patients (32%) had hoarseness develop caused by VCP, as confirmed by laryngoscopy. The left recurrent laryngeal nerve had been sacrificed in 1 patient during surgery, but it was preserved in the remaining 19 patients. Unilateral left VCP was noted in 19 patients, and bilateral VCP occurred in 1 patient. The incidence of VCP was higher in those patients who underwent surgery for type I aneurysms (9 of 14 patients, 64%). In 16 of the 19 patients (84%) who received follow-up for > 6 months, vocal cord movement did not return to normal. Surgery to improve voice quality, arytenoid adduction in five patients and intracordal injection in two patients, was performed with success. Our results indicate that surgery for TAA is associated with a relatively high incidence of VCP. VCP occurred despite preservation of the recurrent laryngeal nerve, and the paralysis did not show a spontaneous recovery even 6 months after surgery.