VOA慢速英语2009年-Health Report - Doctors Are Advised on Tre

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

If using your voice is difficult, then you know what dysphonia is. The more common name for this disorder¹ is hoarseness³.

Experts say about one in three people will become hoarse² at some point in their lives. In the United States alone, an estimated twenty million are affected⁴ at any given time.

Infections, smoking and using your voice too much, too loudly or just incorrectly can all cause hoarseness. It happens more commonly in women, children, the elderly and those who use their voice a lot in their jobs. Experts say hoarseness costs several billion dollars a year in lost productivity from people missing work.

Now, doctors have the first treatment guidelines from the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery Foundation.

The new guidelines recognize that most cases are not serious and go away within a few days. But hoarseness can also be a sign of something worse.

Doctor Richard Rosenfeld helped develop the guidelines.

RICHARD ROSENFELD: "We want to really call attention to the fact that hoarseness is not just a symptom. It occurs as a result of something underlying⁵ which can be potentially serious."

He says there are some situations where people should get examined sooner rather than later.

RICHARD ROSENFELD: "So if you have hoarseness with tobacco or alcohol use, that would be a significant risk factor for cancer or other problems of the throat that could be serious. If you have any sort of a mass or growth in your neck at the same time, that would be very suspicious."

The same is true if hoarseness begins after an accident or injury. Or if you are also losing weight for no reason. Or if you are trying to rest your voice but it keeps getting worse.

If hoarseness continues or the cause is unknown, doctors should perform an examination called a laryngoscopy. This is done in the doctor's office to look down the throat at the voice box and vocal⁶ chords.

The guidelines urge doctors not to use other imaging methods like CT or MRI scans until they have done this. They are also advised not to give anti-reflux medicines for hoarseness unless they are sure patients need them. And doctors are told that steroids or antibiotics⁷ given by mouth are not recommended for hoarseness.

The guidelines say voice therapy is a well-recognized intervention⁸. And they suggest ways to avoid getting hoarse. Drink lots of water. Avoid tobacco smoke and other irritants. And for people who use their voices a lot, like singers or professional speakers, get voice training and use an amplifier.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by June Simms. I'm Steve Ember.

1 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

2 hoarse   

adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的

参考例句：

• He asked me a question in a hoarse voice.他用嘶哑的声音问了我一个问题。
• He was too excited and roared himself hoarse.他过于激动，嗓子都喊哑了。

3 hoarseness   

n.嘶哑， 刺耳

参考例句：

• His hoarseness and coughing showed that he had contracted a cold. 他嗓音嘶哑又咳嗽，这表明他患了感冒。
• Occasionally, recurrent laryngeal nerve involvement causes hoarseness. 有时，喉返神经受累引起声音嘶哑。

4 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

5 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

6 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

7 antibiotics   

n.（用作复数）抗生素；（用作单数）抗生物质的研究；抗生素，抗菌素( antibiotic的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the discovery of antibiotics in the 20th century 20世纪抗生素的发现
• The doctor gave me a prescription for antibiotics. 医生给我开了抗生素。

8 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。