Clin Anat. 2011 Dec 12;
Porter PW, Vilensky JA

The association between the laryngeal saccule and a laryngocele is an important clinical relationship. Here, we describe this and other clinical correlations of the saccule including infection and carcinoma and suggest that these should be discussed in medical gross anatomy courses. We also briefly present some descriptive information on the anatomy and function of the saccule in humans and other higher primates. Clin. Anat. 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital. 2011 Apr; 31(2): 113-7
Fraser L, Pittore B, Frampton S, Brennan P, Puxeddu R

The laryngocele is an abnormal saccular dilatation of the ventricle of Morgagni, which maintains its communication with the laryngeal vestibule. Three types of laryngoceles have been described: internal, external, and combined or mixed in relation to the position of the sac with respect to the thyrohyoid membrane. If the laryngocele becomes obstructed and infected it leads to the so-called laryngopyocele which, although a rare disease (8% of laryngoceles), can become an emergency causing severe airway obstruction needing urgent management, even tracheostomy. An alternative method is presented of emergency management of an internal laryngopyocele causing severe airway obstruction using a laryngeal microdebrider and avoiding tracheostomy.

J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2011 Aug; 40(4): E35-8
Le T, Aljabab A, Battistuzzi S, Nason RW, Alok Pathak K

Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol. 2011 Jun; 120(6): 409-13
Sira J, Makura ZG

In patients less than 40 years of age who present with an upper anterior triangle cystic mass, branchial cyst is the presumed clinical diagnosis. Squamous cell malignancy is the important differential diagnosis in a patient more than 40 years of age. We sought to identify the range of lesions that can be clinically mistaken for, and removed as, branchial cysts.We performed retrospective reviews of 29 neck masses removed as branchial cysts and 47 solitary neck masses diagnosed as cancer between January 2003 and January 2008 across two teaching hospitals in Leeds, England.Of the 29 lesions removed, 23 (79.3%) were confirmed to be branchial cysts. The remainder comprised 2 thyroid papillary carcinomas (6.9%) and 4 benign lesions (13.6%; laryngocele, neurilemmoma, parotid gland cyst, and cystadenoma). Of the 47 cases of metastatic cancer, 3 lesions (6.4%) were clinically mistaken as branchial cysts but were subsequently diagnosed as squamous cell carcinomas.When presented with a solitary lateral cystic mass, clinicians should consider the possibility of squamous cell carcinoma in patients more than 40 years of age, and thyroid papillary cancer should be considered particularly in the younger age groups. In our series, 30.8% of the neck lesions believed to be branchial cysts in patients over 40 were malignant, in contrast to 5.3% of those lesions in patients under 40.

Zhonghua Er Bi Yan Hou Tou Jing Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2011 Mar; 46(3): 244-5
Wu FF, Ye Q

Rom J Morphol Embryol. 2011; 52(1): 183-5
Mitroi M, Căpitănescu A, Popescu FC, Popescu C, Mogoantă CA, Mitroi G, Surlin C

Laryngocele is an abnormal dilatation of Morgagni ventricle (saccule) in direct communication with the laryngeal lumen. Symptoms are not characteristic: hoarseness, dyspnea, foreign body sensation and cough. Sometimes it is presented as cervical swelling causing airway obstruction and need an emergency tracheotomy. In this paper, we report a case of upper airway obstruction due to laryngocele associated with a laryngeal carcinoma who was treated by emergency tracheotomy and, finally by total laryngectomy. A review of the literature is also presented.

Laryngoscope. 2010; 120 Suppl 4: S189
Vengerovich G, McCoul ED, Burstein DH, Yao FB, Lim JW

Acute airway obstruction in the adult can be caused by a rapidly enlarging laryngeal cyst that may present unusually as a midline neck mass. In this case report we present a different surgical technique for the removal of a large combined laryngocele via midline transcervical approach that did not require laryngofissure. This technique allowed simple and fast access, excellent exposure and complete removal of the lesion without resection of thyroid cartilage or associated morbidities.

J Craniofac Surg. 2010 Nov; 21(6): 2022-4
Özcan C, Vayisoglu Y, Güner N, Türkili S, Görür K

Laryngocele is generally defined as abnormal dilatations of the laryngeal saccule. Its etiology is not well known but probably caused by congenital and acquired causes. It is uncommon and usually asymptomatic. It may be seen at any age but is most commonly presented at fifth and sixth decades. They are defined as internal, external, and mixed (combined) types according to their relationship with the thyrohyoid membrane. External laryngocele extends upward and protrudes through the thyrohyoid membrane to the neck. Infection of the laryngocele can cause acute symptoms or worsens existing symptoms. An infected laryngocele is known as laryngopyocele. It is an extremely rare disease and needs urgent diagnosis and treatment. We report a rare case of an external laryngopyocele that presented as upper airway obstruction. We also discussed the effect of needle aspiration in the emergency treatment of external laryngopyocele.

Zhonghua Er Bi Yan Hou Tou Jing Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2010 Sep; 45(9): 777
Liu YQ, Guo X

B-ENT. 2010; 6(3): 215-7
Herrag M, Lahmiti S, Sajiai H, Aderdour L, Maliki O, Raji A, Yazidi AA

Laryngocele is defined as an abnormal dilatation of the laryngeal ventricle. It is a very rare entity, and the exact underlying mechanism is still unclear. Laryngoceles are associated with larynx carcinoma but not yet lung cancer.A 46-year-old man presented with stridor, wheezing, dyspnea at rest, hoarseness evolving over two months, and cyanosis secondary to cervical swelling. His medical history included a 72 pack-year smoking habit and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for 10 years. Airway management included a surgical tracheotomy for respiratory distress. A neck CT revealed laryngocele. A chest X-ray showed a left basal pulmonary opacity. Bronchoscopic exploration found an infiltrated and narrow left stem bronchus with complete stenosis of the lingula. Pathology revealed a small cell lung carcinoma.Our case shows the possible association of laryngocele and lung carcinoma. The pathophysiology was explained by the long history of tobacco smoking and the underlying chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with chronic cough.

Clin Exp Otorhinolaryngol. 2010 Sep; 3(3): 166-71
Park KT, Ahn Y, Kim KH, Kwon TK

A schwannoma of the larynx is a rare benign tumor that usually presents as a submucosal mass in the pyriform sinus and the aryepiglottic space, and this type of schwannoma constitutes a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge for otolaryngologists. We present here two cases of supraglottic schwannomas that were misdiagnosed as laryngoceles. Both were excised through a lateral thyrotomy approach without a tracheostomy, and the laryngeal function was successfully maintained. We discuss the clinical and imaging findings and the management of this rare neoplasm with focusing on the differential diagnosis of laryngeal schwannoma and laryngocele. We also review the relevant medical literature.

Kathmandu Univ Med J (KUMJ). 2009 Oct-Dec; 7(28): 423-5
Dhungel K, Gupta MK, Ahmad K, Sah PL, Rauniyar RK

Laryngocele is a rare entity which can clinically present as a neck mass and requires Computed Tomography (CT) and laryngoscopy for diagnosis. We present an interesting case of bilateral laryngocele in a 45-year-old male presented clinically as hoarseness and left sided neck mass without any history of predisposing factors. Ultrasonography (USG) and CT features of laryngocele is also presented here.