Effect of changes in medial surface shape on voice production in excised human larynges

Clinical intervention of glottal insufficiency often focuses on correcting glottal gap as visualized from above. In contrast, changes in medial surface shape due to intervention have received less attention. This study investigated how changes in medial surface shape affect voice production in excised human larynges, by locally medializing the medial surface at different longitudinal and vertical locations. The results showed that localized medialization at a more inferior location yielded better improvement in glottal closure and higher-order harmonic excitation in the produced voice. This study shows that surgical intervention of glottal insufficiency should also aim at restoring desirable medial surface shape.