Surgery on my vocal cords? how serious is it?

Question:

Im 13 and very hoarse & i constantly have to clear my throat, i went to my GP and he said it may be a pollyp, i visited The ENT clinic and now im scheduled to have my vocal cords checked out and the doctors said they will remove anything harmful they see, is this surgery a serious one, will i be ok and how long will i be out of school, im extremely nervous so can anyone fill me in on the details of what actually goes on in a surgery like this? Also, i got in with the wrong crowd and smoked about 20 cigarettes before,i know im sorry i shouldnt have but i was kind of pressured and young and stupid but 20 cigarettes that was all do you think that has anything to do with my voice?
Please help my nerves are getting the better of me!

Answers:
First of all, polyps (also known as nodules) arent anything to be extremely worried about and are also more common than you think. Not sure if anyone explained to you yet what a polyp is, but its a soft,benign (non-cancerous) small growth,similar to a blister. A polyp usually grows alone on one vocal cord and can often be caused by long term cigarette smoking...so 20 cigarettes total is not long term smoking. I can definitely say that it can worsen your symptoms a lot though if you keep smoking.

Other causes of polyps could be:
-hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid gland)
-gastroesophageal reflux (acid reflux,heartburn,gerd)
-continuous voice misuse (straining of the voice/vocal cords...for example: singing and/or screaming)
Voice polyps can cause the voice to be hoarse,low, and breathy.

A lot of times a doctor will suggest you go to a speech therapist before they consider removing a polyp. A speech therapist will help to retrain your voice and improve your speaking technique (help to show you how to speak without straining your voice/vocal cords). Make sure to talk to your doctor about this...or if youre going with a parent/guardian, have them talk to the doctor about it if youre not comfortable.

If you do wind up needing to have the polyp removed, I suggest talking to the doctor about whats involved with the surgery becaus he/she can answer your questions properly and thoroughly...but at the same time, dont get yourself all worried b/c its not a dangerous surgery and you will be fine. Polyps are very common and can be removed by a doctor easily.

Good luck with everything!

You could have nodules on your vocal cords or you could have GERD, (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease). I had the same symptoms and had GERD which was an easy fix with diet and medication. Ten years later I developed nodules on my vocal cords which could have been removed surgically but I opted for speech therapy to learn the proper way to use my voice. At any rate, whatever the problem may be, I am guessing the doctors will put a scope down your throat, which is done while you are sleeping. You may experience a scratchy throat after the procedure but that's about it. I went back to work( I'm a teacher) the next day. It's really not anything to be worried about. Good Luck!

Surgery on my vocal cords? how serious is it?

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