Otolaryngology Case Reports (Jun 2020)
Tracheotomy avoided in laryngeal mucous membrane pemphigoid treated with rituximab
Abstract
An 80-year-old woman with a history of mucous membrane pemphigoid (MMP) was referred for laryngopharyngeal progression. Flexible nasolaryngoscopy (FN) revealed severe swelling of the supraglottic mucosa, ulcerations of the epiglottis, and significant laryngeal scarring and stenosis that was concerning for need for tracheotomy in the near future. Three weeks of conventional therapy yielded no improvement, so the patient underwent two infusions of rituximab, leading to disease remission and avoidance of tracheotomy.Although numerous treatment modalities for MMP are described in the literature, reports describing successful treatment of laryngeal involvement with rituximab are limited and either failed to spare the patient from surgical intervention or make no mention of it. To our knowledge, our case is the first that specifically denotes the patient being spared a possibly imminent procedure by treatment with rituximab.
