Plastic Surgery for the Vocal Cords│Dr. Omid B. Mehdizadeh

by Anthony Effinger

The Think Neuro podcast from Pacific Neuroscience Institute takes you into the clinic, operating room and laboratory with doctors and surgeons who are tackling the most challenging brain diseases and disorders. Host: Anthony Effinger

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Episode 59: Show Notes

Strange though it may seem, our vocal cords are among our most vital organs. Not only do they allow us to communicate, but they make it possible to swallow without letting food or fluids into our lungs, a dangerous phenomenon that can cause pneumonia.

It’s a complex action, requiring the work of 48 different muscles. Dr. Omid Mehdizadeh is an otolaryngologist—a surgeon who specializes in the head and neck. His specialty is laryngology—complex voice and swallowing disorders. Many patients come to him when they age, or after they have a stroke, both of which can impair the vocal cords.

Dr. Mehdizadeh has lots of techniques to help them, some of which you wouldn’t suspect. As vocal cords age, they lose some of their mass, making it harder for them to close. In those cases, Dr. Mehdizadeh often turns to the same stuff that plastic surgeons use to plump up lips: a filler called Juvederm, or one like it. He injects the cords, giving them new life.

In that sense, Dr. Mehdizadeh is a plastic surgeon for the vocal cords. Listen to this episode to learn more about this crucial organ, how to keep it healthy as you age, and what can be done to repair it, if necessary.

About Dr. Omid B. Mehdizadeh

Omid B. Mehdizadeh, MD, is an Otolaryngology, and Head & Neck (ENT) surgeon. Working with colleagues in the Pacific Eye, Ear & Skull Base Center at Pacific Neuroscience Institute, his particular expertise is in voice, swallowing and throat conditions (laryngology).

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Anthony Effinger

Think Neuro's host is Anthony Effinger, an award-winning journalist who is fascinated with neuroscience and the workings of the brain. Anthony spent 24 years at Bloomberg News, where he covered all aspects of finance, with forays into science and health. In 2006, the Association of Health Care Journalists awarded him first prize for Playing the Odds, an in-depth piece on the changing strategies used to treat prostate cancer. These days, he is a staff writer at Willamette Week, a Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper in Portland, Oregon, where he lives with his wife and two children.

Last updated: September 18th, 2024