Adult congenital bilateral choanal atresia at 49-year-old: a case report of a rare entity

Abstract

Newborns are obligatory nose-breathers in the first few months of their births. Bilateral congenital choanal atresia in neonates is an emergency situation, manifesting by irregular breathing, intermittant cyanosis, relief of symptoms by crying, worsening of respiratory distress by feeding, and sometimes, death due to neonatal asphyxia. Congenital bilateral choanal atresia is very rarely reported in the literature to be reaching to adulthood without being noticed. We present a case of bilateral choanal atresia with the complaints of bilateral nasal blockage and anosmia at 49-years-old who is the second oldest ever reported case.

Keywords

• choanal atresia
• asphyxia
• adult
• bilateral
• nasal obstruction