Laryngeal papillomatosis is a viral disease characterized by the growth of benign tumors in the larynx. The presence of these tumors, or papilloma, adversely affects the voice, and if allowed to proliferate they may cause respiratory failure. The current standard treatment is microsurgical vaporization of the papilloma using a carbon dioxide laser. Disadvantages of the current treatment are primarily a result of the non-specific action of the carbon dioxide laser on soft tissue; in order to completely vaporize the lesion, surrounding normal tissue is disrupted, leaving a wound on the vocal cords. Soft tissue complications such as glottic webbing and other forms of scarring are common. Candela Corporation proposes to develop a new surgical procedure for the treatment of laryngeal papillomatosis based on the selective destruction of lesional microvasculature using a pulsed dye laser. In Phase II, preclinical tests of normal vocal cord physiologic function after pulsed dye laser irradiation will be followed by pilot clinical feasibility studies of the effectiveness of the laser in the treatment of the disease. If successful, the research will lead to a treatment with greatly reduced morbidity, that may be performed under local anesthesia for substantial cost reductions.
The proposed research may lead to a cost-effective, safer alternative treatment for laryngeal papillomatosis, and vascular lesions of the vocal cords and larynx.
| Valdez, T A; McMillan, K; Shapshay, S M (2001) A new laser treatment for vocal cord papilloma--585-nm pulsed dye. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 124:421-5 |
| McMillan, K; Shapshay, S M; McGilligan, J A et al. (1998) A 585-nanometer pulsed dye laser treatment of laryngeal papillomas: preliminary report. Laryngoscope 108:968-72 |
