Unilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve injury most commonly causes which voice change?

Unilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve injury most commonly causes which voice change?

• A. Aphonia
• B. Hoarseness
• C. Stridor
• D. Dysphagia

Answer: (B)

Unilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve injury causes a vocal cord on the affected side to be paralyzed. With one cord not moving, the two vocal folds can’t close together fully during speech. This incomplete glottic closure lets more air escape and creates a breathy, rough, and husky-sounding voice—that’s hoarseness. The opposite vocal fold still works, so phonation isn’t completely lost, which is why you don’t get aphonia. Stridor would suggest airway narrowing from bilateral paralysis or swelling, not just one-sided nerve injury. Dysphagia isn’t the primary issue here either. So the classic voice change from a unilateral RLN injury is hoarseness.

Unilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve injury causes a vocal cord on the affected side to be paralyzed. With one cord not moving, the two vocal folds can’t close together fully during speech. This incomplete glottic closure lets more air escape and creates a breathy, rough, and husky-sounding voice—that’s hoarseness. The opposite vocal fold still works, so phonation isn’t completely lost, which is why you don’t get aphonia. Stridor would suggest airway narrowing from bilateral paralysis or swelling, not just one-sided nerve injury. Dysphagia isn’t the primary issue here either. So the classic voice change from a unilateral RLN injury is hoarseness.