Photo Credit: Jorm Sangsorn

Study on 30 adults with coexisting asthma and vocal cord dysfunction (VCD)/inducible laryngeal obstruction (ILO) highlights challenges such as a “trapped voice,” communication difficulties, limited knowledge about VCD/ILO, and the search for solutions, underscoring the need for clinician awareness and personalized care.

The following is a summary of “Living with asthma and vocal cord dysfunction/inducible laryngeal obstruction: ’I just can’t get air in’,” published in the January 2024 issue of Allergy and Immunology by Majellano et al.

Asthma and vocal cord dysfunction (VCD), also known as inducible laryngeal obstruction (ILO), may concurrently occur, posing challenges and potentially worsening outcomes for affected individuals. This study aimed to investigate the impact of coexisting VCD/ILO and asthma on patients’ quality of life. Through one-to-one semi-structured interviews with 30 purposively recruited adult participants previously diagnosed with asthma by a healthcare professional and confirmed to have VCD/ILO through laryngoscopy, this descriptive qualitative study delved into the subjective experiences of these individuals. 

The thematic and content analysis of the interviews revealed four overarching themes: “trapped voice,” where participants described sensations of their voice being confined in their throat or abruptly ceasing while talking or singing; “altered life,” portraying the challenges in communication and the tendency to curtail conversations due to their condition, “knowledge about VCD/ILO,” highlighting the insufficient understanding and confusion regarding whether asthma contributed to their breathlessness, and “looking for solutions,” illustrating participants’ journeys in seeking explanations for their symptoms. The majority of participants were female (63%), with a mean age of 63±12. 

These findings shed light on the substantial burden experienced by individuals grappling with both asthma and coexisting VCD/ILO, significantly impacting their quality of life. The study emphasizes the need for heightened clinician awareness of the patient’s perspective on VCD/ILO in the context of asthma, advocating for a personalized approach to care that considers the unique challenges and concerns faced by those with these coexisting conditions.

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2213219824000801