About a week after Miriam’s VEPTR surgery, we began to hear a sighing sound from her room while she was sleeping. As the weeks have passed, that sound has become more prominent, and her voice has also gotten increasingly raspy during the day. We took her to an ENT today to have her vocal cords checked. She had to have a numbing spray and then a flexible scope inserted in her nose, which she did not enjoy. The doctor saw she has developed a cyst on one side of her vocal cords, probably due to the irritation caused by the respirator tube from the surgery.
This means Miriam is headed for a minor surgery on Monday, March 11, to remove the cyst. The procedure does require general anaesthesia, but should only last 20 – 30 minutes. She should go home the same day. The doctor told us he was surprised to see a cyst, but that it was much easier to treat than some of the other possible complications he was anticipating based on her symptoms. He also said there should be minimal pain after the surgery. Please join us in praying that this procedure is easy and smooth and does indeed heal her so we can hear her sweet voice back to normal again!
Sending prayers & hugs. Love & Christ’s peace to all of you.
Prayers, as always!
So sorry to hear of this complication. She has been such a trooper through this whole ordeal. Praying that everything goes smoothly and as easy as possible for Miso and YOU!
thank you for the link to “cysts”of this type… helped a lot!
“What Causes These Lesions?
Each of these lesions has a potentially different cause, but there are common factors that contribute to their development. Generally, benign vocal lesions occur in response to injury, but are also well known to have multiple causes. The initial injury may be brought on by
Chronic vocal use/misuse. trauma.
vocal cysts typically do not completely resolve and typically eventually require surgery.
Important Points to Improve Rehabilitation From Surgery:
The patient should have realistic expectation of post-surgical improvement
Good vocal habits
Period of strict post-operative voice rest
Gradual return to maximal voice use”
Grandma knows the hardest part will be the voice rest:)
we’re still praying here!