 esophageal speech, also known as esophageal voice, is a method of speech production that involves oscillation of the esophagus. this contrasts with traditional laryngeal speech which involves oscillation of the vocal folds. instead, air is injected into the upper esophagus and then released in a controlled manner to create sound used to produce speech. esophageal speech is a learned skill that requires speech training and much practice. because of the high level of difficulty in learning esophageal speech, some patients are unable to master the skill. ==clinical== esophageal speech is a skill that can help patients to communicate after a laryngectomy, the most common surgery used for the treatment of laryngeal cancer. in the operation, the larynx and the vocal cords are removed completely. after this, the end of the trachea is sewn onto the edge of an opening cut out at the lower part of the neck, creating a opening (stoma) the patient will breathe from and cough out mucus from. this hole is called a tracheostoma; the patient uses it to breathe through and cough through after the operation. ==character== the air moves from outside the body through the tracheostoma directly to the lungs, without passing through the upper respiratory organs of the nose, mouth, and throat. because it bypasses the vocal folds, speech can be severely impaired, and the development of an esophageal voice becomes necessary. esophageal speech is produced without an artificial larynx, and is achieved by pumping air from the mouth into the upper esophagus. the esophagus is slightly expanded. the air is then released in a regulated manner through the mouth, with simultaneous articulation of words. esophageal speech is quieter and more strenuous than laryngeal speech, and fewer words can be produced successively. good esophageal speakers can produce an average of 5 words per breath and 120 words per minute. very good esophageal speakers speak very similar to tep speakers because of the large, vibrating pharyngo-esophageal segment, the pitch of esophageal speech is very lowâbetween 50 and 100&nbsp;hz. in esophageal speech, pitch and intensity correlate: a low-pitched voice is produced with low intensity and a high-pitched voice is produced with high intensity. the production of the latter is more exhausting. the voice of a speaker without a larynx has what appears to be a nasal tone to it, even thought the nasal passage is no longer connected in a post-surgery laryngectmee patient. ==tracheoesophageal puncture== another option for restoring speech to the laryngectomee is the tracheoesophageal puncture or tep. in this simple surgical procedure, a small puncture is made between the trachea and the esophagus, and a one-way air v
Human_voice Laryngology Phonation Vocal_skills