title: Stem cell approaches for vocal fold regeneration.
abstract: Current interventions in the management of vocal fold (VF) dysfunction focus on conservative and surgical approaches. However, the complex structure and precise biomechanical properties of the human VF mean that these strategies have their limitations in clinical practice and in some cases offer inadequate levels of success. Regenerative medicine is an exciting development in this field and has the potential to further enhance VF recovery beyond conventional treatments. Our aim in this review is to discuss advances in the field of regenerative medicine; that is, advances in the process of replacing, engineering, or regenerating the VF through utilization of stem cells, with the intention of restoring normal VF structure and function.
  
  
  
  English literature (1946-2015) review.
  
  
  
  We conducted a systematic review of MEDLINE for cases and studies of VF tissue engineering utilizing stem cells.
  
  
  
  The three main approaches by which regenerative medicine is currently applied to VF regeneration include cell therapy, scaffold development, and utilization of growth factors.
  
  
  
  Exciting advances have been made in stem cell biology in recent years, including use of induced pluripotent stem cells. We expect such advances to be translated into the field in the forthcoming years. Laryngoscope, 126:1865-1870, 2016.
authors.affiliation: UCL Institute of Child Health, London, United Kingdom.|UCL Ear Institute and Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital and, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jonathan M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Fishman
authors.affiliation: UCL Institute of Child Health, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jenny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Long
authors.affiliation: Department of Phoniatrics, ENT University Hospital Graz, Medical University Graz, Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gugatschka
authors.affiliation: UCL Institute of Child Health, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: De Coppi
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Shigeru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hirano
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Karolinska Institutet Clintec, Karolinska University Hospital Huddinge, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Stellan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hertegard
authors.affiliation: Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin Institutes for Medical Research, Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Susan L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Thibeault
authors.affiliation: UCL Ear Institute and Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital and, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Martin A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Birchall
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007818:Laryngeal Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D012038:Regeneration; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D023822:Tissue Engineering; D014827:Vocal Cords / Q000502:physiology / Q000601:surgery*
keywords: Regenerative medicine; stem cells; tissue engineering; vocal cords