Laryngitis: How to Get Rid of It and Get Your Voice Back

Hoarseness, a scratchy throat and a dry cough after a cold or loud talking are typical signs of inflammation of the larynx. Laryngitis causes a lot of inconvenience: the voice goes, talking hurts, and the cough does not let you sleep. Let’s look at what laryngitis is, how it is treated and how to get your voice back faster.

What Laryngitis Is and How It Shows Itself

Laryngitis is an inflammation of the mucous membrane of the larynx, including the vocal folds. Because of the swelling, the folds do not close properly, and the voice changes. The disease occurs both on its own and against the background of ARVI.

Acute and Chronic Laryngitis

Acute laryngitis develops quickly and usually passes in 7–10 days. Chronic laryngitis lasts for months and arises from constant irritation: smoking, working in dusty rooms, constant strain on the voice, reflux. With chronic laryngitis the voice can be hoarse in the morning or toward evening, the vocal cords tire quickly, and there is a constant scratchy feeling and an urge to clear the throat. If hoarseness lasts more than 3 weeks, an examination by an ENT doctor is needed: this condition cannot be regarded as simply the aftermath of a cold.

Signs: Hoarseness, Dry Cough, Scratchy Throat, Loss of Voice

The main symptoms of inflammation of the larynx:

• a hoarse, raspy or “gone” voice, up to complete loss of voice;
• a scratchy feeling, dryness and soreness in the throat;
• a dry “barking” cough that is especially troublesome at night;
• pain when talking, a feeling of a foreign body;
• temperature no higher than 37.5 °C, weakness.

Why Laryngitis Occurs: Viruses, Voice Strain and Other Causes

Most often laryngitis is caused by influenza and parainfluenza viruses and adenoviruses. Less often it is caused by bacteria. Other causes include shouting, singing, long periods of talking, smoking, dry air, acid reflux, inhaling chemicals and chilling. Risk factors include professions that involve the voice: teachers, singers, managers. A separate role is played by the backflow of stomach contents into the larynx: it irritates the mucous membrane, and the inflammation returns again and again. In this case both the larynx and the stomach need to be treated.

Is laryngitis contagious? Viral laryngitis is — it is spread by airborne droplets. Laryngitis caused by voice strain and irritants is not dangerous to those around you.

How Laryngitis Differs from a Cold, Tonsillitis and False Croup

With a cold the nose and pharynx suffer, and the voice changes little. With tonsillitis the throat hurts badly, the tonsils are inflamed, the temperature is high, and the voice is more often preserved. Laryngitis stands out by its hoarseness and dry cough.

If the temperature is high and the throat hurts so much that it is hard to swallow, you should think of tonsillitis rather than laryngitis. False croup — acute stenosing laryngitis in children — requires special attention. Its signs: a barking cough, noisy breathing on inhalation, difficulty breathing, more often at night. An attack can be life-threatening for a child and requires an urgent call for an ambulance.

How to Treat Laryngitis: What Helps and What Only Harms

The main things in treatment are rest for the voice, humidification and elimination of the cause. Antibiotics do not help with viral laryngitis and are prescribed only for bacterial infection.

Voice Rest and Drinking Fluids

The vocal folds need rest: talk as little as possible, and it is better to stay silent for a few days. You need to drink plenty of warm, but not hot, fluids: water, compote, tea with lemon, milk with honey if there is no allergy. The air in the room should be humid, and smoking is out of the question.

Inhalations, Gargling and Medications as Prescribed by a Doctor

Inhalations with a nebulizer using saline or alkaline mineral water help well. Hot steam should not be used: it can increase the swelling. Gargling with warm solutions reduces the scratchy feeling. To calm the cough and relieve coughing fits, the doctor may prescribe cough suppressants, anti-inflammatory or antihistamine drugs. The treatment plan for laryngitis is determined by the doctor, taking into account the cause, age and accompanying illnesses.

Treatment Mistakes: Whispering, Hot Drinks, Self-Prescribed Antibiotics

Whispering strains the vocal cords more than ordinary speech, so it is better to stay silent. Hot drinks and spicy food irritate the mucous membrane. Taking antibiotics on your own does not speed up recovery and raises the risk of side effects. You should also not smoke, drink strong alcohol or take drugs that dry out the mucous membrane.

How to Get Your Voice Back Faster After Laryngitis

To restore your voice faster, follow some simple rules:

• stay silent for 3–5 days, then return to speaking gradually;
• drink at least 1.5–2 liters of fluid a day;
• humidify the air and ventilate the room;
• avoid shouting, loud singing and talking in the cold;
• do not smoke while you are ill.

Voice professionals — singers and teachers — should return to vocal strain only after the doctor’s permission: premature strain can lead to nodules on the vocal cords. If the voice does not recover after 2–3 weeks, you need an ENT examination with laryngoscopy: the doctor will rule out nodules, polyps and other changes in the vocal cords.

When You Need to See a Doctor Urgently

Urgent help is needed if the following appear:

• difficulty breathing, a whistling noisy inhalation, bluish lips;
• severe throat pain and being unable to swallow saliva;
• a temperature above 38.5 °C that lasts several days;
• blood in the phlegm;
• hoarseness lasting more than 3 weeks, especially in smokers.

ENT Care for Laryngitis at Helyos: Diagnosis, Treatment and Specialists

At the Helyos medical center, otolaryngologists see patients. The doctor will examine the larynx, select treatment and explain how to protect your voice. At the appointment the doctor will ask about the onset of the illness, the strain on your voice and bad habits, examine the throat and, if necessary, perform laryngoscopy — an examination of the larynx using an endoscope. It is painless and takes a few minutes. A comprehensive ENT diagnostic includes endoscopy of the larynx. If laryngitis arose against the background of an infection, a consultation with an infectious disease specialist will help. The cost of an appointment can be viewed on the Helyos price page.