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Dear List-family... For providing me with the impetus to follow-thru in finding a reputable MD who performed this operation, many thanks to Judith Richards for posting the original article last year, an abbreviated copy of which follows below. The complete article should be located in the List Archives. ------------------------------------------- FDA Approves Implants That Restore Lost Voice BALTIMORE, MD - June 10, 1998 -- Johns Hopkins physicians have designed a series of implants that restore bulk to weakened vocal cords, returning the power of speech to those who have lost their voices from paralysis associated with throat cancer, strokes, or other conditions. The implants, shaped like the heads of tiny hammers, are made of hydroxylatitem, a chalk-like substance that melds into the body's tissue over time. Available in 5 sizes, the devices add volume to a weakened vocal cord, pushing it to the center of the voice box so it can meet its counterpart and produce sound. Explained Charles Cummings. M.D., "People who can't close their vocal folds cannot project their voices or trap air effectively, which makes it difficult to exercise or even walk upstairs. There is also a danger of choking on food, as the folds that normally protect the voice box can't close." During a half-hour surgical procedure using local anesthesia, physicians drill a small hole in the side of the neck, creating about an inch-size opening in the thyroid cartilage to reach the vocal cord. Using specially designed instruments, they insert sizers, or dummy devices of varying sizes and ask the patient to speak. When the patient recognizes his or her voice , the physicians remove the sizer and replace it with a same-size implant, locking it in place with a small shim of the same material There's a bit more to the article, however, I've copied most of it here for those of you who may be interested. By the way, UCLA's Dr. Gerald Burke, custom makes each tiny implant for the patient having the surgery, as do many other physicians who've yet to learn of the ready-make implants listed above. Barb Mallut [log in to unmask]