Differential diagnosis of hoarseness of voice in the present scenario: A clinicopathological study

Hoarseness of voice is a common symptom encountered in ENT practice. Present study is based on five hundred and thirty four patients presenting with primary complaint of hoarseness, of all age groups, in the out-patient department of Otolaryngology at the tertiary care centre in five years. A detailed history was taken on a preset proforma and thorough clinical examination including direct laryngoscopy (if indicated) was undertaken which resulted into eight categories of different clinical diagnosis. Carcinoma of larynx with 30.7% comprised the largest group followed by vocal cord paralysis by 26.9%. The outcome of this study is that although the most common cause of hoarseness is carcinoma of larynx which showed a significant correlation with smoking, tubercular laryngitis is still common in India in spite of the modern medicines.