What is Spasmodic Dysphonia? with Video and Voice Recording

Spasmodic Dysphonia is a voice disorder resulting from involuntary movements (or spasms) of the voice box muscles. These spasms interrupt normal voice (dysphonia) in "abrupt spurts" with a strained, strangled voice, with breathy, soundless voice, or with a mixture of both.

• Spasmodic: spasms or involuntary movements
• Dysphonia: abnormal voice

• SD is a type of dystonia, a disorder of the central nervous system that causes involuntary movement of the vocal folds during voice production.
• SD is not a psychiatric or psychological disease.
• Swallowing and breathing, the other important functions of the voice box, are almost never affected.

Three (3) Types of Spasmodic Dysphonia

Type	What Happens	How the Voice Sounds
Adductor SD (80% to 95% of cases)	Vocal folds come together (close) tightly at the wrong time during speech, making it difficult to produce voice	Strained, strangled breaks while speaking
Abductor SDM	Vocal folds move apart (open) at the wrong time during speech, causing air leaks	Breathy or soundless breaks while speaking
Mixed SD	Combination of abductor and adductor SD	Sometimes strained, strangled breaks; sometimes breathy or soundless breaks

Unknown Cause–but Treatment Can Improve Voice Problem.

For spasmodic dysphonia, like all dystonias: 

• the cause is unknown
• there is no specific test for diagnosis
• there is no known cure–but treatment can and does improve symptoms

What I have been diagnosed with is ABductor Spasmodic Dysphonia (ABSd), the rarer kind, wherein I sound breathy and whispery, NOT hoarse. It sounds more like when you’re shy to talk in front of a huge crowd.

I found a video by Dr. Robert Bastian which helped me. It describes SD, it’s different types, shows actual video of vocal cords while speaking plus it  has voice demonstrations of the different kinds of SD.

Dr. Bastian used the script Man’s First Boat – “Long ago, man found that it was easier to travel on water than on land.”

I have also attached a record of my voice clip reading Man’s First Boat. This clip was recorded 01/31/2011. I'll post my latest voice recording soon.