Abstract Body

Background and purpose: Dysphonia describes the impairment of voice production assessed by the clinic, while hoarseness is the perception of change in your voice quality. Dysphonia is very common, affecting nearly one-third of the population and can compromise the quality of life of the individual (socially and professionally). Being such a common symptom, with such a diverse range of etiologies and risk factors, it’s imperative to improve its approach for a better quality of care.

Methods: Search on Scholar Google, National Center for Biotechnology Information database and Pubmed for guidelines, systematic reviews and original articles published from January 2005 to December 2020, using the MeSH terms “dysphonia” and “hoarseness”.

Results: The sound produced by the vocal cords can be affected by various pathologies. The initial evaluation begins with a targeted history and physical examination, while also looking for risk factors and possible causes. It’s important to understand when a laryngoscopy is indicated since an early referral allows an early intervention, and therefore reduces morbidity and mortality associated with certain diagnoses. Voice therapy, vocal cord surgery, and drug therapy for appropriate groups of patients with hoarseness are well documented.

Conclusion: In Portugal, there’s no guidelines about dysphonia and clinicians regulate their practice using international recommendations. This review aims to highlight important information and to outline the approach to dysphonia in primary care. The treatment for dysphonia dependents on its etiology and it should be prescribed accordingly.