ON THE RECOVERY FINDINGS OF THE VOCAL CHORDS IN CASE OF THE RECURRENT LARYNGEAL NERVE PARALYSIS FOLLOWING THYROIDECTOMY

Among 42 patients with the struma carcinomatosa operated, the postoperative complication of the recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis ocurred in 22 cases. In these cases the relation between the paralysis and injury grade in the recurrent and superior laryngeal nerve at the thyroidectomy was investigated. A full recovery took place in 7 cases among these 22 cases, and for them the precise observation of transition in their vocal chord findi- ngs from the paralysis till the recovery were folowed up. (1) The vocal chords at the paralytic side of these 7 cases fixed in the median or para-median position at first, and showed the opening movement and the full healing in 6 months. (2) By recording of the electromyography of the intrinsic laryngeal muscles of these 7 cases with improvement of the paralysis, the necessity of the electromyographic investigation to judge the prognosis of the recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis was emphasized.