Cricothyroid approximation to elevate vocal pitch in male-to-female transsexuals: results of surgery.

Functional changes in voice production, including pitch elevation, may help male-to-female transsexuals assume a new gender identity. To date, there has been a paucity of objective data on the effectiveness of pitch-raising methods. Acoustic data were gathered with regard to preoperative and postoperative changes in pitch, pitch range, and perturbation in 20 patients after cricothyroid approximation.