Professor
Department of Otolaryngology
Yolanda D. Heman-Ackah, MD, MS, FACS subspecializes in professional voice care and laryngology. Her background as a trained musician, dancer, and singer makes her uniquely qualified to understand the vocal demands of the performing artist, and to tailor treatment of professional voice disorders based on this understanding. Her primary practice focus is in treating the professional voice user (singers, actors, public speakers, physicians, lawyers, teachers, etc.), but she also treats other voice and airway problems such as laryngopharyngeal reflux disease, spasmodic dysphonia, laryngeal papillomatosis, airway stenosis, vocal fold paresis and paralysis, arytenoid dislocation, and laryngeal cancer. Her approach to the care of the professional voice is multidisciplinary and includes the active involvement of speaking voice therapists, acting voice therapists, singing voice therapists, gastroenterologists, neurologists, pulmonologists, general surgeons, and other healthcare professionals, as indicated by the individual patient's needs.
Dr. Heman-Ackah received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and her Doctor of Medicine degree from Northwestern University as part of the Honors Program in Medical Education. She completed a residency in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Minnesota where she also received a Master of Science degree in Otolaryngology Research. Her fellowship training was in Professional Voice Care and Laryngology, which was completed in Philadelphia, PA. She is board certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology.
Dr. Heman-Ackah is known nationally and internationally for her pioneering research on the laryngeal chemoreflex, which has furthered our understanding of how laryngeal reflexes can contribute to sudden infant death syndrome, as well as for her research in developing the cepstral peak prominence as a measure for voice analysis and in describing strobovideolaryngoscopic findings in singers. Dr. Heman-Ackah has received numerous awards and grants for her research, including awards from the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, the American Laryngological Association, and the American Laryngological Voice Research and Education Foundation. She has been elected to membership in the International Association of Phonosurgeons, the American Laryngological Association, the Triologic Society, and the American Broncho-Esophagological Society. She has also held memberships in the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), the Voice and Speech Trainer's Association (VASTA), the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Latin Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, and of the Voice Foundation and has held the position of the National Medical Advisor for VASTA. She continues to pioneer advancements in voice care through her basic science and clinical research, as well as through educational programs for medical students, residents, singing teachers, speech-language pathologists, otolaryngologists, and other physicians and voice professionals.
Reasons for referral:
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Professional voice care
- Voice problems
- Vocal fold polyps, cysts, and nodules
- Vocal cord paresis and paralysis
- Spasmodic dysphonia
- Laryngeal stenosis
- Laryngeal papilloma
- Laryngeal tumors and cancers
- Airway problems and difficulty breathing
- Swallowing problems