Contact the Voice and Velopharyngeal Dysfunction Program
For Appointments:
Carmen Villar: 617-355-5116
Fax: 617-730-0320
For Program Information:
Laura Kelly: 781-216-3685
Email: voice.clinic@childrens.harvard.edu
The Voice & Velopharyngeal Dysfunction Center at Boston Children's Hospital is a subspecialty clinic in the Department of Otolaryngology and Communication Enhancement.
Voice disorders
Voice disorders in children are commonly referred to with descriptive terms such as "hoarseness", "raspy voice" and "weak and breathy voice." A child's voice disorder
may significantly impair a child's intelligibility, either by itself or in combination with a speech and articulation difficulty. We fully evaluate children with voice disorders and/or disorders of the velopharyngeal closure.
Is your child a performer? Voice disorders, such as hoarseness, are especially common in child performers. Accurate evaluation and diagnosis is key in managing problems while preserving the voice. Obtaining a baseline examination is also important, particularly in children with professional voice aspirations. Child and teenage performers may place special demands on their voices, and be unable to reach their full potential in the setting of a voice problem.