Symptom Scoring for Predicting Vocal Cord Dysfunction (VCD)

October 28, 2021 updated by: Jonathan Parsons, Ohio State University
Dr. Russell Traister, et al, describes a symptom scoring system based on retrospective chart review to help identify subjects with VCD. Dr. Traister assigned the following symptom scores: dysphonia (2), throat tightness (4), sensitivity to odors (3) and absence of wheezing (2). Patients scoring 4 or more points have a positive predictive value of 96% and a negative predictive value of 77% for VCD. This prospective study will look at a population of patients presenting to a large tertiary care referral center for symptoms of cough. Patients seen at the "Cough Clinic" are evaluated by a Pulmonologist and an Otolaryngologist. Each patient undergoes pulmonary function testing and VLS testing as part of the diagnostic workup. For this study the history would be expanded to include the 4 specific symptoms: dysphonia, throat tightness, sensitivity to odors and absence of wheezing. The symptoms will be scored and compared against the results of diagnostic testing to determine if these symptoms help predict those with vocal cord dysfunction (VCD).

Study Overview

Status

Withdrawn

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Vocal cord dysfunction (VCD) refers to the abnormal adduction of the vocal cords during breathing resulting in extrathoracic airway obstruction. These patients often complain of wheezing, cough and shortness of breath. Symptoms of VCD mimic asthma often leading to misdiagnosis and exposure to unneeded medications. Speech therapy rather than medications is the mainstay of treatment for VCD.

The gold standard diagnostic tool for detection of VCD is direct visualization of the vocal cords using flexible video assisted fiberoptic laryngoscopy (VLS). VCD is present if the cords constrict greater than 50% during the respiratory cycle. VLS is well tolerated however it is an invasive procedure and costly. Identifying patients who most likely have VCD for VLS testing would reduce health related expense and avoid unnecessary procedures. Dr. Russell Traister, et al, describes a symptom scoring system based on retrospective chart review to help identify subjects with VCD. Dr. Traister assigned the following symptom scores: dysphonia (2), throat tightness (4), sensitivity to odors (3) and absence of wheezing (2). Patients scoring 4 or more points have a positive predictive value of 96% and a negative predictive value of 77% for VCD.

This prospective study will look at a population of patients presenting to a large tertiary care referral center for symptoms of cough. Currently patients seen at the "Cough Clinic" are evaluated by a pulmonologist and an Otolaryngologist during their visit. Each patient undergoes pulmonary function testing and VLS testing as part of the diagnostic workup. For this study the history would be expanded to include the 4 specific symptoms described above and scores tabulated and compared against the results of diagnostic testing. The findings of this study will help providers understand the characteristics of patients with VCD and use this information when deciding which patients should be referred for VLS testing.

Study Type

Observational

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

18 years and older (ADULT, OLDER_ADULT)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

All participants male and female, age 18 years and older presenting as new patients to the Cough Clinic will be asked to participate if they are not attended by a guardian or an interpreter. Everyone (regardless if they choose to participate or not) will receive current standard practice/care of the Cough Clinic for evaluation, testing and treatment.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • All participants male and female,
  • age 18 years and older
  • presenting as new patients to the Cough Clinic

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Participants less than 18 years of age and those attended by a guardian or an interpreter

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

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Determine if symptom scoring can accurately predict vocal cord dysfunction
Time Frame: 1 year
We will score each patient according to their symptoms of vocal cord dysfunction including; throat tightness (4 points), dysphonia (2 points), absence of wheezing (2 points), symptoms triggered by strong odors (3 points). A positive response will be assigned the score as indicated in parentheses behind each symptom. A negative response will be assigned zero points.
1 year

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Ohio State University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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

January 1, 2017

Primary Completion (ANTICIPATED)

October 1, 2021

Study Completion (ANTICIPATED)

October 1, 2021

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 24, 2015

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 28, 2021

First Posted (ACTUAL)

November 9, 2021

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)

November 9, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 28, 2021

Last Verified

October 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 2014H0368

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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