 |
|
Graft-vs-Host Disease as a Cause of Enlargement of the Epiglottis in an Immunocompromised Child
Juan I. de Diego, MD;
Maria P. Prim, MD;
David Hardisson, MD;
Antonio J. del Palacio, MD;
Iaki Rabanal, MD
Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2001;127:439-441.
We report a rare case of dyspnea due to enlargement of the epiglottis
in a severely immunocompromised patient. The child underwent a previous tracheostomy
at another hospital because of respiratory distress under the diagnosis of
acute epiglottitis. The patient was subsequently decannulated without incident.
One year later, the child developed a new episode of dyspnea with inspiratory
stridor. A new tracheostomy was neccessary, and a biopsy specimen of the enlarged
epiglottis was taken to confirm the diagnosis of graft-vs-host disease. The
therapeutic measures in these situations are discussed below, and a review
of the current literature concerning the etiology and management of epiglottic
enlargement is performed.
From the Departments of Otorhinolaryngology (Drs de Diego, Prim, del
Palacio, and Rabanal) and Pathology (Dr Hardisson), La Paz Hospital, Autonomous
University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
Corresponding author: Juan I. de Diego, C/Arzobispo Morcillo n 12,
1 C, 28029 Madrid, Spain (e-mail: jidediegomprim{at}retemail.es).
|
