Voice Disorders in Patients With COVID-19 During Illness and After Recovery

Objective Voice disorder has recently been recognized as a manifestation of the 2019 coronavirus disease. Because of the importance of this complication, in this study, voice disorders and dysphonia in patients with COVID-19 during illness and after recovery were investigated. Material and Methods An observational cross-sectional study was conducted in 60 patients with COVID-19 who had vocal disorders during the illness. The Voice Handicap Index questionnaire was completed by the patients in person. Three months after the first visit, the patients were examined for voice disorders, and the questionnaire was completed again. Then, a comparison was made between the scores during the illness and after recovery. Results The patients were in the age range of 19 to 63 years. The average score of evaluation of voice disorder 3 months after recovery (4.11) compared to the time of illness (21.08) was significantly reduced ( P < 0.001). From a statistical point of view, the comparison of voice disorder status according to age and gender was not significant. Conclusion In general, the results of our study showed that the voice disorder in patients may be caused by COVID-19 disease and that it decreases significantly after recovery (3 months later). Studies with larger sample sizes are recommended.