Ventriculocordectomy reduces respiratory noise in horses with laryngeal hemiplegia.

Summary

# Editorial Summary: Ventriculocordectomy for Laryngeal Hemiplegia Laryngeal hemiplegia commonly affects performance horses, yet owners and trainers frequently prioritise noise reduction over functional improvement, creating a clinical gap where the efficacy of surgical interventions had never been rigorously quantified. Brown and colleagues assessed whether ventriculocordectomy—removal of the vocal fold and associated tissues—could objectively reduce the respiratory noise that characterises affected horses. Using acoustic measurements in addition to clinical observation, the researchers found that ventriculocordectomy significantly dampened abnormal respiratory sounds during exercise, providing the first quantitative evidence supporting this surgical approach in the LH population. For practitioners managing performance horses with laryngeal hemiplegia, this work validates noise reduction as an achievable surgical goal and helps justify the procedure when clients are primarily concerned with eliminating respiratory stridor rather than maximising aerodynamic function. These findings are particularly relevant to farriers and coaches working with competition animals, where reduced respiratory noise may improve ridden experience and owner satisfaction alongside any functional gains.

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Key Findings

• •Ventriculocordectomy is effective at reducing respiratory noise in horses with laryngeal hemiplegia
• •Surgery targets noise reduction rather than exercise intolerance in affected show and performance horses
• •This was the first quantitative evaluation of upper-airway surgery effects in laryngeal hemiplegia-affected horses

Conditions Studied