Laryngeal muscle function impairment caused by advanced vocal fold paralysis is an urgent problem to be solved in throat surgery. Circular RNA (circRNA) is a kind of endogenous loop non-coding RNA formed by non-classical splicing. It may play an important role in the development and progression of various diseases through microRNA (miRNA) sponge, alternative splicing regulators and so on. It is a potential biomarker for early diagnosis of diseases or a new target for intervention therapy. With the deepening of research, the relationship between circRNA and nerve, muscle functions and related diseases has also been widely concerned by scholars. This review focuses on circRNA's molecular characteristics, formation mechanism, mode of action, and its research progress in nerve, muscle functions and related diseases, so as to provide new ways for the treatment of advanced vocal fold paralysis.