Abstract
George London was one of the most compelling vocal artists of the early twentieth century. At the age of 47, the great bass-baritone retired from singing. It has been suggested that the premature ending of his operatic career was due to unilateral vocal cord palsy (UVCP). When London retired, the common belief was that this UVCP was caused by viral hepatitis, although there is no evidence to support such an etiology. London’s medical records eliminate the possible etiology of a neck neoplasm, and the long period of time between a heart attack he experienced and his diagnosis of UVCP makes a cardiovascular etiology an unlikely causative factor. London’s relatively young age, the diagnosis of laryngitis prior to his UVCP, and the course of his disease indicate that the underlying cause of the termination of his singing career was post-viral neuropathy. This paper describes the clinical evidence related to London’s vocal cord function and explores the possible causes for his UVCP, which apparently led to his early retirement.
Highlights
George London (1920–1985) was one of the greatest bass-baritone singers of all times (Figure 1)
Hoarseness with vocal cord paralysis, myelopathy, and peripheral neuropathy have been described as unusual neurological manifestations of B12 deficiency.[47,48]
In London's case, there is no description of symptoms that may be associated with vitamin B12 deficiency or toxicity, this etiology is less likely to be the cause of his unilateral vocal cord palsy (UVCP)
Summary
Irit Duek, M.D.1,2, Jacob T. Cohen, M.D.1,2, and Ziv Gil, M.D., Ph.D.1,2* 1Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, The Head and Neck Center, Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel; and 2Rappaport Institute of Medicine and Research, The Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
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