Rhinoplasty - Deviated Septum - Singing Voice?

Any surgery that alters the breathing passageway can have an impact on the tone or timbre quality of your voice. As far as improving your singing voice, it could have either a positive impact or a negative impact. If your voice has a positive nasal quality, it could impact it negatively and vice versa. Qualities of singing are related to vibrations throughout the entire upper airway in addition to the vocal cords so any alterations in structure or function can have an impact, possibly better or worse. Therefore, septorhinoplasty should be considered with some serious thoughts on the matter. For example, there is a reason many professional singers have not had nasal surgery. Even altering the appearance on the outside can have an effect on your overall resonating quality and affect your voice. Good luck in your decision.

It sounds like you have a deviated septum and possibly enlarged turbinates as well. That could certainly create a nasal tone to your singing voice. Surgery to correct the breathing and may also change the tone of your voice, but I would give no guarantee on the singing aspect.

Dear blondieee,


It sounds like you may have some nasal obstruction as well as cosmetic issues that can be addressed at the same time

If you have insurance, some of the costs can be covered to fix your breathing issues

It can make your voice sound less nasal if we can fix all the breathing issues, and this would take an exam to find out all the causes first

When you are ready, please go in for a consultation so that all of your questions can be answered


Best regards,

Nima Shemirani
 

  The septal repair may change the quality to some degree.  Hypernasal causes to speech can be palatal issues, like cleft palate.

A rhinoplasty is done for purely cosmetic reasons and is paid for by the patient.  A deviated septum repair is done for purely functional reasons.  The combination of septorhinoplasty can certainly be done together in the same setting under general anesthesia.  Repairing a deviated septum will make the voice sound less nasal and will have more resonance so it is certainly acceptable to repair that at the same time.  Repairing a deviation of the nasal septum usually improves the singing voice whether it be an amateur or professional voice.

Rrhinoplasty should not change your singing voice. Breathing better may help your mechanics and projection as well as improve your quality of life..

This clinical question comes up from time to time in every plastic surgeon's practice.  In my experience there has been little change in a singing voice following a rhinoplasty.   It may also enhance your ability to breath which may be a win win situation.  

I do not think that rhinoplasty surgery should affect your singing voice. Many singers have had their noses done ( i.e Cher for instance) and sound great.

Addressing the external component should have little to no effect on your voice. There are two types of "nasal" voices, hypernasal and hyponasal. A hypernasal voice is almost always due to dysfunction at the junction of the nasopharynx and oropharynx, usually the palate. This is rare and most well-trained singers are adept at manipulating this junction (if not, they wouldn't have a pleasant singing voice, they would hiss a lot as air continually leaks out the nose). A septorhinoplasty would not likely affect this at all. More commonly is the hyponasal voice. Two extreme examples are when you are sick and your nose is full of mucous or the singing of Bob Dylan. This removes a large portion of your resonating chamber. Most nasoseptal pathology is well anterior to this, and repair will have no detrimental effect on your voice. Nasal surgeons with an Otolaryngology background are usually also trained in voice and speech pathology. I place a camera in the back of the nose of potential nasal surgery candidates who sing or rely significantly on oration (usually politicians, clergy, and motivational speakers). After having them perform certain vocal exercises, I can reliably tell them what if any changes they will have after surgery.

 You are describing nasal obstruction from a deviated septum that would respond to a Septoplasty.  The Rhinoplasty could refine the nose by reducing the nasal bridge and the appearance of the nose.  Reducing the nasal obstruction, with the Septoplasty, may reduce any nasal quality to the voice or it may have literally no impact at all on your vocal quality.