RESEARCH ARTICLE
A Rare Chondrosarcoma of the Larynx Presenting as Difficult Intubation: Report of a Case and Literature Review
Jaydev Sarma1, *, Srinivas M. Susarla2, William C. Faquin3, Phillip C. Song4
Article Information
Identifiers and Pagination:
Year: 2011Volume: 5
First Page: 37
Last Page: 41
Publisher ID: TOATJ-5-37
DOI: 10.2174/1874321801105010037
Article History:
Received Date: 28/05/2011Revision Received Date: 24/07/2011
Acceptance Date: 26/07/2011
Electronic publication date: 25/11/2011
Collection year: 2011
open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Chondrosarcomas of the larynx are rare tumors, representing less than 0.2% of all head and neck malignancies [1]. In this report, we present an unusual case of an undiagnosed chrondrosarcoma of the larynx presenting as difficult intubation in an otherwise asymptomatic patient. Difficult intubation in an otherwise asymptomatic patient has not been reported as an initial presentation of this tumor. Men are more commonly affected than women (3.6: 1), and the tumors typically present in the fifth or sixth decade of life. Patients may present with dyspnea, dysphagia, hoarseness of the voice, airway obstruction and some may have pain as a result of expansion of this tumor. The tumors almost always arise from hyaline cartilage, with the most common site of involvement the cricoid cartilage (75%), specifically the posterior lamina, with the thyroid cartilage and arytenoid cartilage less frequently involved. Though locally invasive, these tumors are characterized by a low tendency for distant metastasis and the overall prognosis following excision is excellent [2].