Tracheoesophageal Speech Starting from the first total laryngectomy, devices that shunted air from the lungs towards the pharynx were the first used as means of voice rehabilitation. The philosophy behind the development of these devices is logical. The lungs provide a "large" air volume that can be used to generate voice.32 All tracheoesophageal speech methods are based on this concept. Previously, relatively big devices were used to shunt air from the lungs towards the pharynx, until the introduction of surgical fistulas in the late 1950s. | 
modified: 08/20/03
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