Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol. 2012 Jan; 121(1): 57-60
Wright CT, Goudy SL

We undertook to characterize the natural course and duration of stridor and other symptoms associated with laryngomalacia and determine the need for surgical intervention.A retrospective observational study was performed at a tertiary children's hospital of 120 consecutive cases of congenital laryngomalacia diagnosed and treated by the senior author between July 2005 and June 2009. The patients' symptoms, associated symptoms, and required interventions were recorded.In 115 cases that were managed without surgery, stridor resolved at a mean patient age of 7.6 months. Five patients (4.2%) required supraglottoplasty to resolve their airway obstruction. The patients who required surgery presented emergently to the hospital 80% of the time, and at a younger mean age (45 days) than did patients who did not require surgery (95 days; p = 0.13); these findings suggest the severe nature of their symptoms. Presenting symptoms of dyspnea or accessory muscle use, feeding difficulties, apnea, cyanosis, oxygen desaturation, and failure to thrive were significantly associated with the requirement for operative intervention (all p values less than 0.02). Nonoperative management included placement of a nasogastric tube due to aspiration in 3 patients.The stridor resolved at an average age of 7.6 months of age in patients with laryngomalacia managed without surgery. A young age at presentation and emergent evaluation in the hospital are associated with a higher degree of symptom severity and a higher rate of surgical intervention. Surgical intervention was necessary to treat laryngomalacia in 4.2% of patients in this study population.

Ugeskr Laeger. 2012 Feb 6; 174(6): 353-354
Meyer LC, Godballe C

Laryngomalacia is the most common cause for congenital stridor. The stridor is caused by collapse of supraglottic structures during inspiration. Two severe cases treated with laser-assisted supraglottoplasty are presented. Our cases as well as the literature describe good effect of the treatment with only few complications. However since laryngomalacia usually it is a benign condition, which in most cases resolves spontaneously within the first two years of the patients life, this treatment should only be used in severe cases, where the alternative treatment would be tracheotomia.

HNO. 2012 Jan 21;
Koitschev A, Sittel C

The most common cause of stridor in newborns is instability of the upper larynx, called laryngomalacia. In approximately 10% of children normal development is impaired. The diagnostics and therapy must follow a clear plan that is also comprehensible to the parents. The obstruction should be localized endoscopically, the anatomical characteristics determined, and the surgical possibilities evaluated. Additional pathological changes of the upper airway (e.g., vocal fold paresis) need to be excluded. Surgery for laryngomalacia, called supraglottoplasty, allows reduction of excess mucus, transectioning of aryepiglottic folds that are too short, and in some cases epiglottic fixation to the base of the tongue. In extreme cases tracheotomy is unavoidable. Surgery is only recommended for severe cases; when carried out correctly according to the medical indications, the success rate is over 90%.

Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2012 Jan; 138(1): 50-4
Chan DK, Truong MT, Koltai PJ

To evaluate the polysomnographic outcomes after supraglottoplasty (SGP) performed for obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) associated with occult laryngomalacia.Retrospective case series with medical chart review.Tertiary pediatric medical center.Twenty-two patients aged 2 to 17 years met the inclusion criteria of polysomnography-proven OSAS and occult laryngomalacia seen on flexible fiber-optic sleep endoscopy. Infants with congenital laryngomalacia were excluded.Carbon dioxide laser SGP was performed either alone or in conjunction with other operations for OSAS.Preoperative and postoperative nocturnal polysomnographic data were paired and analyzed statistically.Supraglottoplasty for occult laryngomalacia resulted in statistically significant reduction in the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) (from 15.4 to 5.4) (P <.001). Subgroup analysis of children who underwent either SGP alone or in combination with other interventions showed comparable reductions in AHI. Medical comorbidities were associated with worsened postoperative outcomes, although still significantly improved compared with baseline. Overall, 91% of children had an improvement in AHI, and 64% had only mild or no residual OSAS after SGP.Supraglottoplasty is an effective technique for the treatment of OSAS associated with occult laryngomalacia.

Pediatrics. 2012 Feb; 129(2): e364-9
Zgherea D, Pagala S, Mendiratta M, Marcus MG, Shelov SP, Kazachkov M

Protracted bacterial bronchitis is defined as the presence of more than 4 weeks of chronic wet cough that resolves with appropriate antibiotic therapy, in the absence of alternative diagnoses. The diagnosis of protracted bacterial bronchitis is not readily accepted within the pediatric community, however, and data on the incidence of bacterial bronchitis in children are deficient. The objective of this study was to determine the frequency of bacterial bronchitis in children with chronic wet cough and to analyze their bronchoscopic findings.We performed a retrospective review of charts of children who presented with chronic wet cough, unresponsive to therapy, before referral to the pediatric pulmonary clinic.A total of 197 charts and bronchoscopy reports were analyzed. Of 109 children who were 0 to 3 years of age, 33 (30.3%) had laryngomalacia and/or tracheomalacia. The bronchoscopy showed purulent bronchitis in 56% (110) cases and nonpurulent bronchitis in 44% (87). The bronchoalveolar lavage bacterial cultures were positive in 46% (91) of the children and showed nontypable Haemophilus influenzae (49%), Streptococcus pneumoniae (20%), Moraxella catarrhalis (17%), Staphylococcus aureus (12%), and Klebsiella pneumoniae in 1 patient. The χ(2) analysis demonstrated that positive bacterial cultures occurred more frequently in children with purulent bronchitis (74, 69.8%) than in children with nonpurulent bronchitis (19, 19.8%) (P < .001).Children who present with chronic wet cough are often found to have evidence of purulent bronchitis on bronchoscopy. This finding is often indicative of a bacterial lower airway infection in these children.

Am J Otolaryngol. 2011 Dec 16;
Adil E, Rager T, Carr M

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to describe and compare the airway findings in term and preterm infants with laryngomalacia. METHODS: A retrospective review of 130 patients diagnosed as having laryngomalacia at a tertiary referral center between July 2004 and August 2009 was conducted. Medical records were reviewed for demographic data, supraglottic and glottic airway findings, concomitant airway lesions, and the need for intervention. RESULTS: The mean gestational age and age at diagnosis was 36 and 15 weeks, respectively. Combined posterior and anterior supraglottic collapse was the most common finding (31%). Posterior collapse alone occurred in 25%, anterior collapse in 14%, and lateral collapse in 10%. Twelve percent of patients had all 3 sites of collapse. Forty-one percent of patients had a secondary airway lesion, with tracheomalacia being the most common. Preterm infants had significantly higher rates of reflux and more sites of collapse than did term infants (P < .0001). Eight patients required an intervention for their symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Children with laryngomalacia tend to have more than 1 area of supraglottic collapse, and more than one third have a secondary lesion. All patients who required an intervention had more than 1 area of collapse, and 63% of these patients had a secondary airway lesion. Our high incidence of secondary lesions is similar to recent reports.

Indian J Anaesth. 2011 Sep; 55(5): 534-6
Chandran R, Dave N, Padvi A, Garasia M

Sometimes anaesthesiologists come across rare congenital anomalies in their practice. The inherent complications associated with the disorder necessitate tailor-made approaches for providing anaesthesia to even seemingly simple surgical interventions. Here, we share our experience of anaesthesia management of an infant with congenital laryngomalacia and recently diagnosed osteogenesis imperfecta type 1 who had presented to us with an acute abdomen for a semi-emergency herniotomy.

Orphanet J Rare Dis. 2011; 6: 81
Leboulanger N, Garabédian EN

ABSTRACT: A laryngo-tracheo-esophageal cleft (LC) is a congenital malformation characterized by an abnormal, posterior, sagittal communication between the larynx and the pharynx, possibly extending downward between the trachea and the esophagus. The estimated annual incidence of LC is 1/10,000 to 1/20,000 live births, accounting for 0.2% to 1.5% of congenital malformations of the larynx. These incidence rates may however be underestimated due to difficulty in diagnosing minor forms and a high mortality rate in severe forms. A slightly higher incidence has been reported in boys than in girls. No specific geographic distribution has been found. Depending on the severity of the malformation, patients may present with stridor, hoarse cry, swallowing difficulties, aspirations, cough, dyspnea and cyanosis through to early respiratory distress. Five types of laryngo-tracheo-esophageal cleft have been described based on the downward extension of the cleft, which typically correlates with the severity of symptoms: Type 0 laryngo-tracheo-esophageal cleft to Type 4 laryngo-tracheo-esophageal cleft. LC is often associated with other congenital abnormalities/anomalies (16% to 68%), mainly involving the gastro-intestinal tract, which include laryngomalacia, tracheo-bronchial dyskinesia, tracheo-bronchomalacia (mostly in types 3 and 4), and gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD). The syndromes most frequently associated with an LC are Opitz/BBB syndrome, Pallister Hall syndrome, VACTERL/VATER association, and CHARGE syndrome. Laryngeal clefts result from failure of fusion of the posterior cricoid lamina and abnormal development of the tracheo-esophageal septum. The causes of the embryological developmental anomalies leading to LC are not known but are thought to be multifactorial. LC appears to be mostly sporadic although some familial cases with suspected autosomal dominant transmission have been reported. The age of diagnosis depends mainly on the severity of the clinical symptoms and therefore on the extent of the LC. Diagnosis is made either based on clinical manifestations or on investigations, such as endoscopy, X-ray, CT scan, performed for other conditions. Differential diagnoses include tracheo-bronchial fistula, gastro-esophageal reflux disease and neurological swallowing disorders, as well as laryngomalacia and laryngeal palsy. Prenatal diagnosis of LC has never been reported, although associated anomalies may be detected on fetal ultrasonography. Once the cleft is diagnosed, it is essential to determine its length to orient the management and treatment approach. Management involves maintenance of satisfactory ventilation, prevention of secondary pulmonary complications as a result of repeated aspirations, and adequate feeding. Endotracheal intubation may be required for respiratory distress in severe cases. Treatment requires endoscopic or external surgery to close the cleft. Surgery should be performed as early as possible to avoid complications related to aspiration and gastric reflux, except in type 0 and type 1 cases in which conservative measures must first be attempted. The prognosis is variable depending on the severity of the LC and associated malformations. Early diagnosis and appropriate treatment and management help to reduce mortality and morbidity.

Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2011 Dec 1;
Katz ES, Mitchell RB, D'Ambrosio CM

Obstructive sleep apnea in infants has a distinctive pathophysiology, natural history, and treatment compared to older children and adults. Infants have both anatomical and physiological predispositions towards airway obstruction and gas exchange abnormalities; including a superiorly-placed larynx, increased chest wall compliance, ventilation-perfusion mismatching, and ventilatory control instability. Congenital abnormalities of the airway, such as laryngomalacia, hemangiomas, pyriform aperature stenosis, choanal atresia and laryngeal webs may also have adverse effects on airway patency. Additional exacerbating factors predisposing infants towards airway collapse include neck flexion, airway secretions, gastro-esophageal reflux, and sleep deprivation. Obstructive sleep apnea in infants has been associated with failure to thrive, behavioral deficits, and sudden infant death. The proper interpretation of infant polysomnography requires an understanding of normative data related to gestation and post-conceptual age for apnea, arousal, and oxygenation. Direct visualization of the upper airway is an important diagnostic modality in infants with obstructive apnea. Treatment options for infant obstructive sleep apnea are predicated on the underlying etiology, including supraglottoplasty for severe laryngomalacia, mandibular distraction for micrognathia, tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy, choanal atresia repair, and/or treatment of gastro-esophageal reflux.

Eur Ann Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Dis. 2011 Dec; 128(6): 321-3
Aubin A, Lescanne E, Pondaven S, Merieau-Bakhos E, Bakhos D

To describe the diagnosis and management of lingual thyroglossal duct cyst in newborns.A one-month-old girl presenting with inspiratory stridor and chest wall retraction was referred to our department for management of stridor. Upper airway endoscopy and neck CT scan showed a round mass at the base of the tongue causing upper airway obstruction. Computed tomography showed a well-circumscribed, low-density lesion at the base of the tongue. Endoscopic marsupialization of this lesion was performed under general anaesthesia. Histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of lingual thyroglossal duct cyst. No recurrence was observed 18 months after endoscopic treatment.Lingual thyroglossal duct cyst with airway obstruction is an uncommon aetiology of stridor in newborns with symptoms similar to those of laryngomalacia. The diagnosis is based on laryngoscopy. Surgical endoscopic removal is the treatment of choice. Recurrence after endoscopic treatment is rare.

J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2011 Nov; 128(5): 1135-6.e1-10
Lim K, Li JT

Phys Sportsmed. 2011 Sep; 39(3): 163-71
Pedersen L, Elers J, Backer V

Elite athletes have a high prevalence of asthma and exercise-induced bronchoconstriction. Although respiratory symptoms can be suggestive of asthma, the diagnosis of asthma in elite athletes cannot be based solely on the presence or absence of symptoms; diagnosis should be based on objective measurements, such as the eucapnic voluntary hyperpnea test or exercise test. When considering that not all respiratory symptoms are due to asthma, other diagnoses should be considered. Certain regulations apply to elite athletes who require asthma medication for asthma. Knowledge of these regulations is essential when treating elite athletes. This article is aimed at physicians who diagnose and treat athletes with respiratory symptoms. It focuses on the pathogenesis of asthma and exercise-induced bronchoconstriction in elite athletes and how the diagnosis can be made. Furthermore, treatment of elite athletes with asthma, anti-doping regulations, and differential diagnoses such as exercise-induced laryngomalacia are discussed.