What Is Laryngoscopy?
Doctors sometimes use a small device to look into your throat and larynx, or voice box. This procedure is called laryngoscopy.
They may do this to figure out why you have a cough or sore throat, to find and remove something that’s stuck in there, or to take samples of your tissue to look at later.
What Does My Larynx Do?
It helps you talk, breathe, and swallow. It’s at the back of your throat and at the top of your windpipe, or trachea. It houses your vocal chords, which vibrate to make sounds as you speak.
When doctors need to look into your larynx and other nearby parts of your throat or put a tube into your windpipe to help you breathe, they use a small hand tool called a laryngoscope.
Modern versions of the tool often include a small video camera.
When Is Laryngoscopy Needed?
Your doctor may do it to find out why you have a sore throat that won’t go away or to diagnose an ongoing problem such as coughing, hoarseness, or bad breath. They also might do one when:
You have something stuck in your throat.
You have something or the feeling of something stuck inside your throat
You have laryngitis, whether acute or chronic laryngitis
You have difficulty swallowing or breathing
You have an earache that doesn't go away
You have a chronic hoarseness
You're coughing up blood
You have throat pain that doesn't go away
You have long-term (chronic) cough
You smoke and have a long-term respiratory problem
You have bad breath that doesn't go away
You have a mass in your neck or head area with signs of cancer
You have voice problems lasting for over three weeks, including weak voice, hoarseness, no voice or raspy voice
The doctor may perform a direct laryngoscopy to:
Remove a tissue sample in the throat to exam it more closely under a microscope
Remove something that's blocking your airway (i.e. a swallowed coin or marble)
Types of Laryngoscopy
There are several ways your doctor may do this procedure:
Indirect laryngoscopy. This is the simplest form. Your doctor uses a small mirror and a light to look into your throat. The mirror is on a long handle, like the kind a dentist often uses, and it’s placed against the roof of your mouth.
The doctor shines a light into your mouth to see the image in the mirror. It can be done in a doctor’s office in just 5 to 10 minutes.
You’ll sit in a chair while the exam is done. Your doctor might spray something into your throat to make it numb. Having something stuck in your throat might make you gag, however.
Direct fiber-optic laryngoscopy. Many doctors now do this kind, sometimes called flexible laryngoscopy. They use a small telescope at the end of a cable, which goes up your nose and down into your throat.
It takes less than 10 minutes. You’ll get a numbing medication for your nose. Sometimes a decongestant is used to open your nasal passages as well. Gagging is a common reaction with this procedure as well.
Direct laryngoscopy. This is the most involved type. Your doctor uses a laryngoscope to push down your tongue and lift up the epiglottis. That’s the flap of cartilage that covers your windpipe. It opens during breathing and closes during swallowing.
Your doctor can do this to remove small growths or samples of tissue for testing. They can also use this procedure to insert a tube into the windpipe to help someone breathe during an emergency or in surgery.
Direct laryngoscopy can take up to 45 minutes. You’ll be given what’s called general anesthesia, so that you will not be awake during the procedure. Your doctor can take out any growths in your throat or take a sample of something that might need to be checked more closely.
