The fact that we humans differ significantly from animals also has to do with our ability to communicate using language. This is a very complicated process involving many physical functions. One important component of language is the larynx.
What is the larynx?
Schematic diagram showing the anatomy of the larynx. Click to enlarge. The larynx is a complex apparatus composed mainly of cartilaginous tissue (thyroid cartilage, cricoid cartilage, epiglottis, and stellate cartilage), ligaments, and muscles that ensures that a person can form sounds, enabling them to speak, sing, or even laugh. The larynx, known as the larynx in medical terminology, is located in the center of the human throat, and its location is particularly visible in men through the Adam’s apple, which of course women also have. Its movements, such as swallowing and speech, are clearly visible when observed. Animals also have a larynx, but its structure differs slightly. For example, some animals can make sounds but cannot speak.
Anatomy and structure
The larynx lies below the throat (pharynx), and its location can be “felt” by conscious swallowing. Loosely attached to the larynx are the vocal cords (also called vocal folds), which are thus free to vibrate and in this way are able to produce sounds with the help of the air during controlled exhalation, in simple terms this is how our speech is created. Since the larynx is located very close to the esophagus, it is equipped with the so-called epiglottis, which closes the trachea during the swallowing process, so that no food can enter the respiratory tract. Thus, the stimulus of coughing can also ensure that foreign bodies are transported upward from the esophagus toward the oral cavity. The larynx is thus a very sophisticated system that nevertheless performs its function largely very unconsciously. As food passes through the larynx during ingestion, if we have not swallowed properly, our speech sounds rough and occupied, as is also the case with infectious diseases of the upper respiratory tract, for example, when the voice is “slurred.”
Functions and tasks
In humans, the larynx is mainly and significantly responsible for the formation of speech, for the formation of voice (phonation) and is therefore important basis for our communication. Consequently, the larynx has two functions: Voice formation and protection of the trachea and airways through the swallowing process and the swallowing reflex. The posterior part of the tongue (base of the tongue) is firmly attached to the larynx, which on the one hand serves the swallowing process, and on the other hand this also regulates speech. Singers take advantage of this feature to form and vary vowels in different ways and to give the voice a deeper sound. Especially in classical music, where a large resonance chamber is required, a characteristic sound is achieved by means of various techniques that seem to pull the larynx “down”.
Diseases
Common and typical diseases of the larynx include inflammation of the larynx (laryngitis) and cancer of the larynx (laryngeal carcinoma). The latter occurs frequently, especially in smokers, and can take very aggressive forms. Diseases of the larynx are usually acquired diseases; congenital malformations of the larynx are extremely rare. Inflammatory laryngeal diseases are usually accompanied by infections of the respiratory tract. Other diseases to be mentioned here are diphtheria (croup, inflammation of the larynx) and pseudocroup (laryngitis subglottica, inflammation just below the vocal cords). A condition feared among singers is vocal cord polyps or vocal cord nodules, also known as “crying nodules” or “singing nodules.” Anyone who talks a lot, sings a lot, or generally subjects their voice to extraordinary stress can develop vocal cord nodules as a result of permanent overuse of the vocal cords. Babies who cry a lot can also get them. In such cases, surgery is often the only remedy, but in any case the baby should be absolutely forbidden to speak for several weeks. A stroke can also affect the voice, so can be affected by the hemiplegia of one of the two vocal cords, it comes to a hoarse speech.
Typical and common disorders
- Laryngitis
- Laryngeal cancer
- Laryngeal paralysis
- Epiglottitis (inflammation of the epiglottis)
