Pharmacy Daily | Glow Red for Voice Day

IN honour of World Voice Day on 16 Apr, landmarks across Australia and New Zealand will glow red, from Federation Square in Melbourne to the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour, literally shining a light on issues around voice health.

It's part of a campaign from the Australian Dysphonia Network (ADN), which aims to start conversations around the voice disorder known as dysphonia.

The theme for World Voice Day this year has been revealed to be "resonate, educate, celebrate". According to a press release from the ADN, unlike vision and hearing, the wider community often takes their voice for granted.

However, chronic dysphonia can be the result of damage to the larynx, an underlying health condition, overuse or it can be standalone diseases, like spasmodic dysphonia, which impacts one in every 100,000 people in Australia.

Around 30% of occupations around the world rely on the use of voice, including teachers, salespeople, politicians, lawyers and plenty of others.

A condition like dysphonia can have dire consequences on someone's career and interpersonal relationships, potentially leading to mental health issues like depression, said the ADN.

Unfortunately, there is a lack of education around dysphonia, and as a result, it is often misunderstood and poorly diagnosed. The ADN is a not-for-profit organisation that was established in 2016, with the aim of supporting those impacted by a voice disorder and educating the wider community about related issues.

Led by people who either live with a voice disorder or have a friend or loved one who does, the ADN aims to educate the general population, GPs and health practitioners about voice disorders.

It also lobbies for and funds research around the causes, management and social impacts of the disorders. Visit adn.org.au for more information, support group chats, downloadable resources, tools and webinars. JHM