Plenary Session
Caring for Your Vocal Instrument, with Dr. Robert Bastian, Session II: When Things Go Wrong - What Can I Do for Myself, and What Must Be Done for Me?
Monday, July 11 • 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Presenter: Dr. Robert Bastian
Introduced by: Norman Spivey
Location: Chicago Ballroom D-H - 5th Floor
Common issues that threaten singers are 1) a vocal fold posturing abnormality called muscle tension dysphonia, 2) a lowered muscular ceiling often seen peri-menopausally, and 3) one of the various kinds of vibratory injuries of the surface tissue of the vocal folds. The vocal phenomenology and visual criteria for each of these disorders will be elucidated, along with general treatment options for each, highlighting the role of voice teachers in each of these circumstances. In addition, newer technologies and their applications will be presented.
About Robert Bastian
Robert W. Bastian, M.D. founded Bastian Voice Institute in the western suburbs of Chicago, in 2003. Previously, he reached the rank of Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology, Loyola University—Chicago, and maintains a current affiliation there as Clinical Professor of Otolaryngology. For more than 25 years, Dr. Bastian’s work has focused exclusively on voice, swallowing, and airway disorders. Particular areas of interest include vocal fold microsurgery, with a lifetime caseload estimated at more than 4000 of which well over a thousand are singers. In addition, he follows a large population of patients with spasmodic dysphonia (lifetime caseload of over 1600 patients) and adult recurrent respiratory papillomatosis. He is known as well as a pioneer of modern office-based surgical procedures, including use of the pulsed-KTP and thulium lasers. Other areas of expertise include swallowing disorders; non-organic voice and airway disorders; and laser and other surgeries for cancer. In addition to maintaining a busy practice, Dr. Bastian is also building a large educational website called Bastian Medical Media for Laryngology.
