This has been a huge year for singer/songwriter Adele.
The 23-year-old Brit, whose hits include Rolling In The Deep and Someone Like You, has topped the nominations list for this year's American Music Awards. She was nominated for Artist of the Year, Favorite Female Artist, Favorite Adult Contemporary
Artist, and Favorite Album for 21.
But the singer's soulful signature sound may have come at a high price. Recently, Adele has had to cancel the rest of her 2011 performances because of damage to her vocal cords.
Adele is being treated by , Director of the at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Zeitels has been entitled a "" because some of the most famous voices in the world— including Steven Tyler, Julie Andrews,and ESPN sportscaster Dick Vitale— have entrusted their pipes to him. Dr. Zeitels confirmed that he is treating the singer for a vocal cord hemorrhage:
Her people wanted me to talk to you. They wanted to make sure that the truth was out there. There have been crazy and unfortunate rumors — that she’s being treated for cancer, for example. I can tell you that is absolutely not true. To be blunt, her throat is bleeding. It’s a common condition among singers. But it is not career-ending. It is not the most serious. And in her case it can be fixed with surgery. And I will be performing that surgery on Adele at some point in the future. I believe she will be just fine.Dr. Zeitels is one of the pioneers of the microsurgical procedures used to repair vocal cord hemorrhages, as well as for removing other vocal cord growths (such as and and cancers). He has designed more than 20 new laryngeal procedures and instrument used to do them. He also began to use special lasers [pulsed (pulsed-dye and KTP) and continuous wave (thulium and KTP) lasers] in the treatment of vocal cord diseases to preserve vocal cord function.
Adele is obviously in very good hands, which is great news for her many fans worldwide!
What is a vocal cord hemorrhage?
According to the , a vocal cord hemorrhage results when one of the blood vessels on the surface of the vocal cord ruptures and the soft tissues of the vocal cord fill with blood.Hemorrhage is usually the result of vocal trauma. Vocal abuse or misuse, such as excessive use of the voice when singing, talking, smoking,coughing, yelling, or inhaling irritants can cause damage to the tiny blood vessels of the vocal cords. These may rupture and bleed. Blood vessels that are more fragile than normal, such as those swollen by laryngitis, may also be more prone to bleed. The main symptoms of vocal hemorrhage are hoarseness and loss of voice occurring over a fairly brief time period. This is not painful, and does not cause any difficulty with swallowing or breathing.
How is a vocal cord hemorrhage treated?
Vocal cord hemorrhage is considered a vocal emergency and is treated with absolute voice rest until the hemorrhage resolves.Often this is a one-time event, and other than improving vocal technique to prevent re-occurrence, nothing else need be done.
However, according to , a otolaryngologist on the faculty at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, "Repeated hemorrhage... always has an underlying cause, be it a harmful voice behavior or an irregularity on the vocal fold. In the first case, voice therapy may be useful, and in the second, microlaryngoscopy may be necessary to remove or repair any small irregularities or blood vessels prone to bleeding. This is among the more delicate surgeries in laryngology."
What is vocal abuse?
Vocal abuse is any behavior or occurrence that strains or injures the vocal folds (or vocal cords). This may include excessive talking, throat-clearing, coughing, inhaling irritants, smoking, screaming, or yelling. Vocal misuse is improper voice usage such as speaking too loudly or at an abnormally high or low pitch. Frequent vocal abuse and misuse can damage the vocal folds and cause temporary or permanent changes in vocal function, voice quality, and possible loss of voice.What are some of the disorders of vocal abuse and misuse?
The most common disorders resulting from vocal abuse and misuse are laryngitis, vocal nodules, vocal polyps, and contact ulcers. Health professionals who have training in voice and voice disorders often refer to these conditions as “hyperfunctional voice disorders.”How are disorders of vocal abuse and misuse treated?
Most disorders of vocal abuse and misuse are reversible. The best treatment is to identify and eliminate the vocal behavior that created the voice disorder. In many cases, a brief period of voice therapy is helpful so that the individual can learn good vocal techniques such as proper breath support for speech or eliminating forceful voicing.It seems to me that a lot of celebrities are having vocal problems lately: Adele, , , to name a few.
The growth and popularity of reality performance shows such as The Voice, American Idol and X-Factor can
turn untrained singers into overnight superstars.
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