Voice and Swallowing Outcomes Following Revision Anterior Cervical Spine Surgery

January 14, 2026 updated by: Kirk P. Withrow, MD, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Evaluate voice and swallowing outcomes post operatively.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Anterior Cervical Decompression and fusion is one of the most common spinal surgical procedures performed in the United States. Common complications of this type of surgery are difficulty swallowing and nerve dysfunction that can effect voice. The chance of having voice and swallowing disturbances increases if this type of surgery has to be repeated. The purpose of this study is to document the voice and swallowing function of patients undergoing this type of surgery in an effort to find better ways to identify and treat these common complications.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

200

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Alabama
      • Birmingham, Alabama, United States, 35233
        • UAB

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

19 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients undergoing revision anterior cervical spine surgery

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients undergoing revision anterior cervical spine surgery

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Primary pathology of the upper aero-digestive tract other than mild chronic pharyngitis, pre-existing vocal cord paralysis.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
Intervention / Treatment
Voice and Swallowing Evaluations
Other: Voice and Swallowing evaluations
Fiberoptic exam to evaluate vocal cord and swallowing function

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Vocal cord and swallowing function as measured by fiberoptic exam in the otolaryngology clinic pre-op and approximately 3 weeks post op.
Time Frame: 4 weeks
4 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Quality of life as measured by a self-administered 10 point questionnaire.
Time Frame: 4 weeks
4 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Alabama at Birmingham

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: William R Carroll, MD, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

October 26, 2009

Primary Completion (Actual)

December 25, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

January 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 4, 2009

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 19, 2009

First Posted (Estimated)

November 20, 2009

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

January 16, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 14, 2026

Last Verified

January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IRB-090409003 (Other Identifier: UAB)

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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