A mechanical larynx, also referred to as a "throat back", is a medical device used to produce clearer speech by those who have lost their original voicebox

Larynx

The larynx , commonly called the voice box, is an organ in the neck of amphibians, reptiles and mammals involved in breathing, sound production, and protecting the trachea against food aspiration. It manipulates pitch and volume...

, usually due to cancer of the larynx

Cancer of the larynx

Laryngeal cancer may also be called cancer of the larynx or laryngeal carcinoma. Most laryngeal cancers are squamous cell carcinomas, reflecting their origin from the squamous cells which form the majority of the laryngeal epithelium....

. The most common device is the electrolarynx which is handheld, battery operated and placed under the mandible producing vibration to allow speech. Along with developing esophageal voice, robotic voice or undergoing a surgical procedure, the mechanical larynx serves as a mode of speech recovery for postlaryngectomy

Laryngectomy

Laryngectomy is the removal of the larynx and separation of the airway from the mouth, nose and esophagus. The laryngectomee breathes through an opening in the neck, a stoma. This procedure is usually performed in cases of laryngeal cancer...

 patients.

Overview

Initially, the pneumatic mechanical larynx was developed in the 1920s by Western Electric

Western Electric

Western Electric Company was an American electrical engineering company, the manufacturing arm of AT&T from 1881 to 1995. It was the scene of a number of technological innovations and also some seminal developments in industrial management...

, which did not run on electricity

Electricity

Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...

, and was flawed in that it produced a weak voice. Electric devices, namely the electrolarynx, were introduced in the 1940s, at a time when esophageal voice

Esophageal speech

Esophageal speech, also known as esophageal voice, is a method of speech production that involves oscillation of the esophagus. This contrasts with traditional laryngeal speech which involves oscillation of the vocal folds. Instead, air is injected into the upper esophagus and then released in a...

 was being promoted as the best course in speech recovery; however, since that technique is difficult to master, the electrolarynx became quite popular. Since then, many medical procedures, such as the tracheo-oesophageal puncture

Tracheo-oesophageal puncture

A tracheo-oesophageal puncture is a surgically created hole between the trachea and the esophagus in a person who has had a total laryngectomy, a surgery where the larynx is removed...

, were created to enable speech without continued dependence on a handheld device.

Another type of mechanical larynx is called an electropharynx.

Sometime electrolarynx can also be used for other purpose rather than just a mechanical larynx, for example to rule out fetal acidosis in condition of non reactive fetal heart tracing during labor.

Further Reading

• Brook I. (2010) My Voice: A Physician’s Personal Experience with Throat Cancer. Creatspace Publishing. ISBN 1439263868