Objectives/hypothesis: To retrospectively determine optimal timing for initiation of nimodipine within a cohort of patients with acute vocal fold paralysis (VFP).
Study design: Retrospective patient review.
Methods: Subjects were divided into three groups: initiation within 15 days postinjury (n = 19), between 15 and 30 days postinjury (n = 23), or greater than 30 days postinjury (n = 11).
Results: Fifty-one patients (53 paralyzed vocal folds [VFs]) met entrance criteria and were offered and started off-label nimodipine treatment. Thirty-six of 53 VFs recovered purposeful motion (67.9%). There was no significant difference in the rate of VF recovery among patients who began nimodipine within 15 days (68.4%), patients who started nimodipine between 15 and 30 days (73.9%) of nerve injury (P = .1405), and patients who initiated nimodipine after 30 days postinjury (54.5%).
Conclusions: Nimodipine treatment for acute VFP yielded equal VF motion recovery rates regardless of when the medication was initiated. Time to recovery of motion was not different between groups studied.
Keywords: Nimodipine; laryngeal electromyography; laryngeal muscle innervation; nerve regeneration/drug effects; timing; vocal cord paralysis.
© 2014 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.