Management of Idiopathic Vocal Process Granuloma: A Survey of Academic Laryngologists.

OBJECTIVES: Vocal process granulomas (VPGs) are benign laryngeal lesions that may manifest as ulcerated regions of the vocal fold or nodular polypoid lesions. Gold standard treatments for idiopathic VPG are yet to be established at this time. This study evaluated clinical decision-making and outcomes in the treatment of VPG patients based on experiences of academic laryngologists across the United States. METHODS: A 21-question survey was developed to evaluate each respondent's specific VPG patient population, clinical decision-making in treating VPG, and corresponding treatment outcomes. The survey was distributed to 168 laryngologists at academic institutions across the United States. Data were analyzed through the Qualtrics platform. RESULTS: A total of 106 responses were analyzed, with a completion rate of 63.1%. Etiology of VPG was most commonly attributed to phonotrauma (96.2%) and reflux (71.8%). Primary first-line treatment was most commonly antireflux medications (92%). Other common first line treatments included voice therapy (58.8%) and inhaled steroids (42.5%). With these treatments, the majority of laryngologists report that recurrence is uncommon (68.4%). Dysphonia was cited as the most frequent long-term sequelae at 27.8%. CONCLUSIONS: VPG treatment strategies continue to be controversial across the United States with many treatments described in the literature with variable application in the practice of academic laryngologists today. Based on survey results, antireflux medications and voice therapy may be the most widely used and most effective treatment options. Establishment of gold standard therapy for VPG as well as further research into recurrent or persistent VPG despite antireflux and voice therapy should be explored. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 5 Laryngoscope, 134:795-802, 2024.

Arytenoid granuloma: a single-institution experience of management of 62 cases.

OBJECTIVE: This retrospective study was undertaken to assess the outcome of the medical and/or surgical management of patients presenting with clinical features of arytenoid granuloma. METHODS: The records of 53 males and 9 females were reviewed for predisposing factors, types of treatment received and recurrence following the treatment. RESULTS: Most of the patients (48 out of 62, 77.4 per cent) were treated conservatively with medical management and voice therapy, which resulted in complete resolution of arytenoid granuloma in over two-thirds of the patients treated (32 out of 48, 66.6 per cent). Overall, 28 patients (out of 62, 45.1 per cent) required surgery (14 failed medical treatment cases and 14 surgery as first-line treatment cases). Of these, five patients (out of 28, 17.9 per cent) had recurrence, and were managed with revision surgery and concurrent local injection of Botox. CONCLUSION: Anti-reflux medication and voice therapy are effective first-line management options. Pre- and post-surgery adjuvant treatment improves the results of surgery. Local injection of Botox was successful in the treatment of failed surgical cases.

Post-intubation laryngeal injury after COVID-19 treatment causing dyspnea: A report of six cases.

Severe cases of COVID-19 often require orotracheal intubation (OTI) and mechanical ventilation, and post-intubation laryngeal injury (PI-LI) is one of the important complications of OTI. Some studies have claimed that the frequency of PI-LI may be higher in COVID-19 patients as compared with that in non-COVID-19 patients, because of the larger size of endotracheal tube used, the longer OTI time, use of prone positioning of the patients, etc. Herein, we describe six cases of PI-LI who presented with dyspnea after recovering from COVID-19. Five of the patients were male and the median OTI period was 9 days. All the patients showed abnormal endoscopic findings, including posterior glottic synechiae/stenosis or subglottic/posterior glottic granulomas. Four patients required surgical intervention, including tracheostomy, laryngomicrosurgery, or laterofixation of the vocal cord. Many post-COVID-19 patients experience persistent symptoms (post-COVID-19 syndrome), including dyspnea. Two of our patients with dyspnea had been treated by internists as cases of post-COVID-19 syndrome. Therefore, we wish to underscore the need for every healthcare professional to be aware of the possibility of PI-LI after OTI, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Otolaryngologists should undertake endoscopic assessment of the larynx in patients presenting with dyspnea after recovering from COVID-19.

Laryngeal complications after endotracheal intubation and prone positioning in patients with coronavirus disease 2019.

Objectives: Laryngeal complications have been reported after endotracheal intubation and prone positioning in patients with critical coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but their association is unclear. In this study, we investigated the rate of laryngeal complications in patients with COVID-19 compared to an alternative condition (control group). Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the data of 40 patients who underwent endotracheal intubation for either COVID-19 or an alternative condition (control group). Data on age, sex, body mass index (BMI), cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors, use of prone therapy, duration of endotracheal intubation, and duration from extubation/tracheostomy to laryngeal evaluation were collected from medical records. Results: There were no significant differences in BMI, frequency of CVD risk factors, duration of endotracheal intubation, or duration from extubation/tracheostomy to laryngeal evaluation between the two groups. In the COVID-19 group, all patients adopted the prone position. In comparison, only one patient in the control group adopted the prone position. Significant differences were observed between the two groups regarding the incidence of vocal fold immobility and laryngeal granuloma. Conclusion: Laryngeal complications were more common in the COVID-19 group than in the control group. Prone positioning may be a risk factor for these complications. Level of Evidence: 4.

A Case of Laryngeal Granulomas After Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery With Prolonged Intubation.

Laryngeal granuloma development can be a postoperative complication of laryngeal trauma or irritation resulting from general anesthesia and endotracheal intubation. These rare benign lesions are located primarily over the cartilaginous portions of the larynx, particularly the vocal processes of the arytenoids. Airway manipulation during the intubation process and prolonged intubation periods can be contributing factors to intubation-related laryngeal granulomas, which may manifest 1 to 4 months after intubation. The patient in this case was a female who returned with complaints of throat pain without hoarseness or sensations of a "lump in her throat" 3 months following surgery, during which she was intubated with a 7.0-mm nasotracheal tube for 30 hours, likely contributing to her bilateral laryngeal granulomas. The patient underwent successful conservative medical management consisting of a proton pump inhibitor and an inhaled corticosteroid.

Operative and Conservative Management of Laryngeal Contact Granuloma: A Network Analysis and Systematic Review.

OBJECTIVE: Laryngeal contact granuloma is a disease of benign hypertrophic granulation tissue at the medial side of vocal process. Numerous studies of conservative and surgical management have reported effectiveness, yet optimal treatment has not been standardized. We compared primary and secondary outcomes of conservative and surgical treatment using endoscopic grading, Voice Handicap Index-10 (VHI-10), maximum phonation time (MPT), and recurrence rate. METHODS: We performed literature searches of MEDLINE, PubMed, and EMBASE from November 1985 to October 2017, with randomized controlled trials and case control studies of at least three months follow-up as the inclusion criteria. Outcomes included laryngoscopic findings, MPT, and VHI-10. Data regarding study design, outcome analysis, follow-up time, and disease remission were systematically collected. RESULTS: A total of 1069 patients were abstracted from 19 papers. With conservative treatment, 98% of patients' laryngeal granuloma resolved within three months, and 84% for the surgical group. There was a decrease in VHI-10 of 2.69 (95% credible interval (CI) -9.52 to 3.82) and 6.48 (95% CI -15.00 to 1.94) for conservative and surgical management, respectively. MPT improvement was 1.27 s (95% CI: 2.03-5.84) for conservative treatment and 5.02 s (95% CI: 0.78-8.07) for surgical. For all 19 studies, absolute recurrence risk for control, conservative, and surgical measures were respectively 4%, 16%, and 29%. CONCLUSIONS: Most patients treated conservatively or surgically alone responded to treatment, but conservative management was favored. VHI-10 and MPT improvement in surgical patients were noted, but only the latter was statistically significant. In regard to recurrence, conservative management had better outcome than surgical. Taken together, the results suggest that minimally symptomatic granulomas have higher response rate and lower recurrence risk when treated conservatively, while larger, symptomatic granulomas may favor surgical excision followed by medical management to reduce risk of recurrence.

Impact of Remnant Nodules on Immediate and Long-term Outcomes of Voice Therapy for Vocal Fold Nodules.

OBJECTIVES: In this study, we aimed to assess whether remnant vocal fold nodules (VFN) influence immediate and long-term voice outcomes after voice therapy. STUDY DESIGN: This is a retrospective cohort study evaluating immediate and long-term voice outcomes. METHODS: Twenty-five adult patients with VFN who completed voice therapy were included in this study. Patients were classified into remnant (n = 18) and nonremnant (n = 7) groups according to the presence of remnant nodules immediately after completion of voice therapy. Acoustic and perceptual parameters, as well as voice handicap index (VHI), were compared between groups immediately (immediate outcome) and more than 3 months (long-term outcome) after completion of voice therapy. RESULTS: Immediately after voice therapy, there were no significant differences between groups in grade-roughness-breathiness-asthenia-strain (GRBAS) score, jitter, shimmer, noise-to-harmonics ratio, voice range profile, or s/z ratio. Postvoice therapy VHI scores did not significantly differ between the two groups (9.29 ± 8.94 in the nonremnant group vs. 12.78 ± 9.01 in the remnant group, P = 0.392). The overall GRBAS grade of all patients was maintained at 0 or 1 during long-term follow-up. There was no significant difference between the long-term VHI scores of the remnant group (10.00 ± 8.58) and the nonremnant group (5.67 ± 8.71) (P = 0.306). CONCLUSIONS: Immediately after voice therapy, perceptual scores, acoustic parameters, and VHI scores all significantly improved regardless of presence of remnant nodules. Favorable outcomes of voice therapy were maintained during long-term follow-up regardless of presence of remnant nodules after voice therapy.

Machine Learning in Laryngoscopy Analysis: A Proof of Concept Observational Study for the Identification of Post-Extubation Ulcerations and Granulomas.

OBJECTIVE: Computer-aided analysis of laryngoscopy images has potential to add objectivity to subjective evaluations. Automated classification of biomedical images is extremely challenging due to the precision required and the limited amount of annotated data available for training. Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have the potential to improve image analysis and have demonstrated good performance in many settings. This study applied machine-learning technologies to laryngoscopy to determine the accuracy of computer recognition of known laryngeal lesions found in patients post-extubation. METHODS: This is a proof of concept study that used a convenience sample of transnasal, flexible, distal-chip laryngoscopy images from patients post-extubation in the intensive care unit. After manually annotating images at the pixel-level, we applied a CNN-based method for analysis of granulomas and ulcerations to test potential machine-learning approaches for laryngoscopy analysis. RESULTS: A total of 127 images from 25 patients were manually annotated for presence and shape of these lesions-100 for training, 27 for evaluating the system. There were 193 ulcerations (148 in the training set; 45 in the evaluation set) and 272 granulomas (208 in the training set; 64 in the evaluation set) identified. Time to annotate each image was approximately 3 minutes. Machine-based analysis demonstrated per-pixel sensitivity of 82.0% and 62.8% for granulomas and ulcerations respectively; specificity was 99.0% and 99.6%. CONCLUSION: This work demonstrates the feasibility of machine learning via CNN-based methods to add objectivity to laryngoscopy analysis, suggesting that CNN may aid in laryngoscopy analysis for other conditions in the future.

Giant laryngeal granuloma developed after a severely stressful life event.

Laryngeal granulomas are ascribed to laryngopharyngeal reflux, voice abuse, and endotracheal intubation, but their pathogenesis is controversial. A recurrent giant granuloma causing dyspnea occurred after a severe psychological stress and was successfully treated by surgery, steroid injection, and psychotherapy. This case highlights the role of psychological stress in granulomas pathogenesis.

Assessing the utility of non-surgical treatments in the management of vocal process granulomas.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether patients would have equivalent or improved outcomes when receiving non-surgical management versus surgical removal for vocal process granulomas. METHODS: A chart review was performed for 53 adults with vocal process granulomas. All patients received baseline anti-reflux treatment consisting of twice-daily proton pump inhibitors and vocal hygiene education. Further treatment approaches were divided into non-surgical (i.e. inhaled corticosteroids, voice therapy, botulinum toxin injections) and surgical groups. Subjective parameters (Voice Handicap Index 10 and Reflux Symptom Index) and outcomes were tabulated and statistically compared. Cause of granuloma was also analysed to determine if this influenced outcomes. RESULTS: Of 53 patients, 47 (89 per cent) experienced reduction in granuloma size, while 37 (70 per cent) experienced complete resolution. The rate of complete granuloma resolution after initial treatment strategy alone was significantly higher in non-surgical compared to surgical patients (67 and 30 per cent, respectively; p = 0.039). No difference in outcome was seen between iatrogenic and idiopathic granulomas. CONCLUSION: Non-surgical patients were more likely to experience initial treatment success than those who underwent surgical removal. Continued emphasis should be placed on conservative treatment options prior to surgery for patients with this condition.

Spontaneous Giant Laryngeal Granuloma in the Absence of Laryngeal Injury.

The etiology of laryngeal granuloma can typically be attributed to endotracheal intubation, vocal abuse, or gastroesophageal reflux disease. There is a strong male predominance, except in cases due to intubation, where incidence is higher in women. We report a case of spontaneous development of multiple granulomas in a female with no history of intubation who presented with hoarseness and massive bilateral supraglottic masses obscuring her glottis. The disparity between the massive lesions and asymptomatic reflux highlights the need for further research in the pathophysiology of laryngeal granulomas.

Laryngeal granulomas in patients after two-jaw surgery - Four cases report.

BACKGROUND: Endotracheal intubation can cause focal ischemia, damage or edema to the laryngeal mucosa, and may be followed by serious complications such as vocal cord paralysis, ulcers, and granulation tissue formation. Laryngeal granuloma is rare but also a significant late complication of endotracheal intubation, and anesthesiologists should be concerned about it. CASE: We experienced four cases of laryngeal granuloma that developed after two-jaw surgery January 2017-December 2018 in our hospital and would like to report these cases with brief review of literature. CONCLUSIONS: There are frequent movements on the head and neck in maxillofacial surgery and the nasotracheal intubation should be prolonged after bimaxillary osteotomy surgery because of post-operative airway problems. This may be why two-jaw surgery may have higher occurrence of laryngeal granuloma than others.

Granulomas of the membranous vocal fold after intubation and other airway instrumentation.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: We describe the clinical features of granulomas of the membranous vocal fold secondary to endotracheal intubation, bronchoscopy or esophagogastroduodenoscopy. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case series. METHODS: Review of cases at a single tertiary institution with evaluation of patient demographic characteristics, time to presentation, time to treatment, and clinical outcomes. RESULTS: Thirteen adult patients were identified with postintervention granuloma of the membranous vocal fold. All patients were female, with a mean age of 60 years (range, 28-81 years). None noted hoarseness prior to the intervention, and all noted significant hoarseness postoperatively. Conservative treatment with proton pump inhibitors and vocal rest was initially implemented in all patients. Four cases resolved without further intervention. Nine underwent surgical management because of airway symptoms, failure to improve, or patient request. One patient had injury to the contralateral vocal fold upon intubation. None experienced recurrence. Five had complete recovery of voice postoperatively, four did not. CONCLUSION: Iatrogenic granulomas of the membranous vocal fold after intubation or other upper airway instrumentation are rare complications presenting in the early postprocedure period with worsening hoarseness. Initial conservative treatment may be sufficient to yield resolution, and surgical treatment is effective for those failing medical management. Permanent voice damage may result from the original injury. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4 Laryngoscope, 129:441-447, 2019.

Laryngeal granulomas in patients after two-jaw surgery: Four cases report

BACKGROUND: Endotracheal intubation can cause focal ischemia, damage or edema to the laryngeal mucosa, and may be followed by serious complications such as vocal cord paralysis, ulcers, and granulation tissue formation. Laryngeal granuloma is rare but also a significant late complication of endotracheal intubation, and anesthesiologists should be concerned about it.CASE: We experienced four cases of laryngeal granuloma that developed after two-jaw surgery January 2017–December 2018 in our hospital and would like to report these cases with brief review of literature.CONCLUSIONS: There are frequent movements on the head and neck in maxillofacial surgery and the nasotracheal intubation should be prolonged after bimaxillary osteotomy surgery because of post-operative airway problems. This may be why two-jaw surgery may have higher occurrence of laryngeal granuloma than others.

A Case of Laryngeal Granuloma Likely Caused by Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Disease Following a Sagittal Split Ramus Osteotomy.

Laryngeal granuloma is an uncommon complication of prolonged endotracheal intubation. A 25-year-old woman with severe jaw deformity underwent sagittal split ramus osteotomy under general anesthesia. Two days after extubation, the patient complained of hoarseness, sore throat, and dyspnea. When symptoms persisted, she was evaluated in the Otolaryngology Department. She was diagnosed with laryngeal granuloma of the bilateral arytenoid cartilages, and conservative treatment was selected. Administration of corticosteroid hormones, proton pump inhibitors, and a subsequent follow-up examination performed in our outpatient clinic showed no evidence of recurrence 10 months after the initial presentation.

Granuloma laríngeo posintubación: una rara complicación de la intubación traqueal en pediatría. Caso clínico / Post-intubation laryngeal granuloma: a rare complication of tracheal intubation in pediatrics. Case report

Los granulomas laríngeos son lesiones benignas localizadas en el tercio posterior de la glotis, sobre todo, a nivel de la apófisis vocal del cartílago aritenoides. Típicamente, se asocian a tres factores etiológicos: intubación endotraqueal, uso inapropiado de la voz y/o reflujo gastroesofágico. La formación de un granuloma laríngeo posintubación es una complicación tardía relacionada con la lesión por la intubación. Es poco frecuente en el niño, en especial, si el período de intubación es corto. Generalmente, es unilateral y produce disfonía, sensación de cuerpo extraño faríngeo y tos. El tratamiento consiste en la escisión quirúrgica cuando la lesión es pediculada o causa compromiso respiratorio. Se presenta a una adolescente de 14 años que desarrolló un granuloma laríngeo pediculado después de una intubación orotraqueal de menos de 24 horas, el cual se hizo evidente 3 meses después de una cirugía cardíaca. Se describe la patogenia, las manifestaciones clínicas, el diagnóstico y el tratamiento de esta patología.

Laryngeal granulomas are benign lesions located in the posterior third of the glottis, mainly at the level of the vocal apophysis of the arytenoid cartilage. They are typically associated with three etiological factors: endotracheal intubation, inappropriate voice use and/or gastroesophageal reflux. The formation of a post-intubation laryngeal granuloma is a late complication related to intubation injury. It is uncommon in the child, especially if the period of intubation is short. It is usually unilateral and produces dysphonia, pharyngeal foreign body sensation and cough. Treatment consists of surgical removal when the lesion is pediculated or causes respiratory compromise. We present a 14-year-old girl who developed a pediculated laryngeal granuloma after orotracheal intubation of less than 24 hours, which was evidenced 3 months after cardiac surgery. We describe the pathogenesis, clinical manifestations, diagnosis and treatment of this pathology.

[Post-intubation laryngeal granuloma: a rare complication of tracheal intubation in pediatrics. Case report]. / Granuloma laríngeo posintubación: una rara complicación de la intubación traqueal en pediatría. Caso clínico.

Laryngeal granulomas are benign lesions located in the posterior third of the glottis, mainly at the level of the vocal apophysis of the arytenoid cartilage. They are typically associated with three etiological factors: endotracheal intubation, inappropriate voice use and/or gastroesophageal reflux. The formation of a post-intubation laryngeal granuloma is a late complication related to intubation injury. It is uncommon in the child, especially if the period of intubation is short. It is usually unilateral and produces dysphonia, pharyngeal foreign body sensation and cough. Treatment consists of surgical removal when the lesion is pediculated or causes respiratory compromise. We present a 14-year-old girl who developed a pediculated laryngeal granuloma after orotracheal intubation of less than 24 hours, which was evidenced 3 months after cardiac surgery. We describe the pathogenesis, clinical manifestations, diagnosis and treatment of this pathology.

Los granulomas laríngeos son lesiones benignas localizadas en el tercio posterior de la glotis, sobre todo, a nivel de la apófisis vocal del cartílago aritenoides. Típicamente, se asocian a tres factores etiológicos: intubación endotraqueal, uso inapropiado de la voz y/o reflujo gastroesofágico. La formación de un granuloma laríngeo posintubación es una complicación tardía relacionada con la lesión por la intubación. Es poco frecuente en el niño, en especial, si el período de intubación es corto. Generalmente, es unilateral y produce disfonía, sensación de cuerpo extraño faríngeo y tos. El tratamiento consiste en la escisión quirúrgica cuando la lesión es pediculada o causa compromiso respiratorio. Se presenta a una adolescente de 14 años que desarrolló un granuloma laríngeo pediculado después de una intubación orotraqueal de menos de 24 horas, el cual se hizo evidente 3 meses después de una cirugía cardíaca. Se describe la patogenia, las manifestaciones clínicas, el diagnóstico y el tratamiento de esta patología.

Role of lifestyle modifications for patients with laryngeal granuloma caused by gastro-esophageal reflux: comparison between conservative treatment and the surgical approach.

CONCLUSIONS: It is considered that a regimen combining pharmacologic management and lifestyle modifications is the most effective treatment for laryngeal granulomas caused by GER. OBJECTIVES: This study compared the results of the combination therapy and surgery to determine the best treatment of laryngeal granuloma caused by gastro-esophageal reflux in 51 patients. METHODS: Prospective study. RESULTS: In the conservative treatment group, the CR rate was 89.7% and recurrence rate was 2.6%, while the lesions remained in patients (7.7%). This study compared the CR and recurrence rates between conservative treatment and surgery for granuloma. The results showed that the laryngeal granuloma recurrence rate was significantly lower with the conservative treatment regimen compared with surgery (p = .0016).

The results of Kaplan-Meier and multivariate analyses of etiological factors related to the outcome of combined pharmacological therapy against laryngeal granuloma.

CONCLUSIONS: The present results indicate that the diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is an independent etiological factor predicting retardation of the resolution of laryngeal granuloma. OBJECTIVES: To assess the effects of combined usage of an inhaled corticosteroid plus tranilast and/or a proton pump inhibitor on the size of granulomatous lesions, and to reveal etiological factors related to the outcome using the Kaplan-Meier method and a subsequent multivariate analysis. METHODS: Sixty-two patients with laryngeal granuloma were enrolled. An inhaled corticosteroid plus tranilast (300 mg/day) and rabeprazole (20 mg/day) were administered to all of the patients, and only to those diagnosed to have GERD, respectively. The size of granulomatous lesion was measured for each patient at the initial visit and every 4 weeks. At 48 weeks, the Kaplan-Meier plots for lesion disappearance rate were compared between groups with and without each of the etiological factors, followed by Cox proportional-hazards regression. RESULTS: The 48-week lesion disappearance rates for the whole population were 82.3%. Although the Kaplan-Meier analysis exhibited significant differences between patients separated by GERD diagnosis, phonotrauma, and habitual smoking, only GERD were identified as a real independent etiological factor affecting the resolution of the lesion by a multivariate analysis using Cox's proportional-hazards regression.

Botulinum Toxin A for Treatment of Contact Granuloma.

OBJECTIVES: Contact granuloma has been associated with voice abuse, laryngopharyngeal reflux, and habitual throat clearing. It has a high propensity for persistence and recurrence. Treatment options included voice therapy and antireflux measures. Surgical excision has been considered in patients who do not respond to medical management. In this research, we aimed to present our experience with botulinum toxin injection only. STUDYDESIGN: Retrospective case series of a tertiary referral center. METHODS: Our series consisted of 22 patients, who underwent botulinum toxin injection only as an office procedure to bilateral thyroarytenoid and lateral cricoarytenoid muscles in 2 × 1.25 to 2 × 2.5 U. No other treatment was applied. The cases were followed up for at least 6 months ranging between 6 and 100 months with a mean of 28. RESULTS: Seventeen cases (77%) were cured of their granuloma. Eleven of the cured cases had grade 2, four cases had grade 1, and two patients had grade 3 granuloma. CONCLUSIONS: Botulinum toxin A injection only is an efficient treatment modality in contact granuloma, especially for grade 1, 2, and 3 cases, and it can be used as a first-line treatment.