Biphasic Stridor Related to a Congenital Vallecular Cyst

Abstract

Congenital vallecular cyst (VC) is a rare but potentially fatal pathology in neonates and infants. It usually manifests with symptoms such as stridor, apnea and cyanosis that develop shortly after birth. Stridor is the most common encountered symptom. VC is frequently accompanied by laryngomalacia (LM) and LM is the most common cause of stridor in infants. Diagnosis can be made by flexible laryngoscopy or bronchoscopy. Surgery is the mainstay for VC treatment. Here we present an infant who had respiratory distress, biphasic stridor and cyanosis worsened during feeding and crying, and diagnosed VC. The respiratory symptoms of the patient recovered rapidly after surgical resection.

Keywords

• flexible bronchoscopy
• infant
• respiratory distress
• stridor
• vallecular cyst