Robert F. Kennedy Jr. he has an extremely raspy voice.
The 70-year-old has previously said his now recognizable hoarseness is the result of a rare neurological disorder called spasmodic dysphonia, which he was diagnosed with in 1996.
“I had a very strong voice until I was 46 years old. It was unusually strong,” he said during a news release in June 2023. “My voice is shaking because of it. At the time I didn’t know what was wrong with it. But when I went on TV, people would write me letters and say, ‘You have spasmodic dysphonia.'”
“I can’t listen to myself on TV,” he said then. “I will never listen to this show and I will not listen to any. So I’m sorry you have to listen to me.”
Spasmodic dysphonia is a chronic neurological speech disorder that results in involuntary muscle spasms that open or close the vocal cords. It causes the voice to suddenly sound breathy, strained, shaky, or hoarse as if the person has lost their voice, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
This disorder affects about 50,000 people in the United States and is more likely to affect women than men. Although spasmodic dysphonia can begin at any age, it usually occurs between the ages of 30 and 60.
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Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
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The exact cause of spasmodic dysphonia is unknown, but most cases stem from triggers in the brain and nervous system.
According to the National Institutes of Health, spasmodic dysphonia can be hereditary. Although the specific gene for the disorder has not been identified, a mutation in the gene that causes other forms of dystonia has also been associated with spasmodic dysphonia.
There is no cure for spasm dysphonia and it is a lifelong condition. However, there are treatments to reduce vocal cord spasms and relieve symptoms.
Botox injections – which are needed every three to six months – and talk therapy are common forms of treatment. There are also more invasive treatment options, including thyroplasty surgery or selective laryngeal adductor denervation-reinnervation (SLAD-R) surgery.
Last year, Kennedy said during an interview that he had recently undergone surgery in Japan to treat his disorder. Noting that the procedure is not yet available in the United States, he said he had titanium implanted between his vocal cords to keep them from constricting.
“I’ve done a lot of things in functional medicine and I’ve worked with a chiropractor and I’ve worked with a lot of other people and my voice is getting better and better now,” he said. “And I think it was partly the surgery, but partly the therapies I’m doing now.”
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education