Voice and Communication in Transgender and Gender Diverse Individuals

This book serves as a guide to any patient, clinician, or person who desires to understand how transgender and gender diverse individuals can be assisted in achieving voice and communication congruity with gender. Voice and communication style serve as intricate links to one’s identity and are central aspects of the gender transition process. Guiding a transgender or gender diverse patient through this transition is complex, requiring an understanding of the patient’s desires, the ability to identify and work with patients to achieve sustainable patterns of behavioral modification that affect voice in a positive manner, and an understanding of the role of newly emerging surgical techniques. This is best addressed by an interdisciplinary team, and this book makes this material available in one source.

The first section of the book consists of introductory chapters written by primary care physicians, endocrinologists, and psychiatrists addressing the complex nature of transition from the medical standpoint. A review of hormonal replacement therapies, psychological evaluations, and potential effects of hormone replacement on voice is included. The second section describes the behavioral techniques available in speech and voice therapy for voice change and addresses outcomes that can be expected from behavioral intervention. Each chapter addresses the physiologic principles of therapeutic techniques for effecting change, techniques of instruction, nuances for transgender and gender diverse patients, methods of generalization, and methods of maintenance. Finally, the third section of the book details the surgical techniques available to assist patients in voice transition and their expected outcomes for voice modification. Each chapter includes an introduction, preoperative assessment, role of preoperative therapy, surgical technique, postoperative management, and expected outcome. This section also includes a surgical atlas.

This is an ideal guide forotolaryngologists, speech-language pathologists, primary care providers, as well as psychiatrists and endocrinologists caring for transgender and gender nonconforming patients.