Unexpected Difficult Intubation due to Lingual Thyroid: A case report / 대한마취과학회지

ABSTRACT

Lingual thyroid is a rare clinical entity that is due to the failure of the thyroid gland to descend early in the course of embryogenesis. It may be present with symptoms of dysphagia and upper airway obstruction. We report here on the case of a 63-year-old female who was scheduled for an operation for lumbar disc herniation and she could not be intubated. The cause of the airway obstruction was an ectopic thyroid at the base of the tongue, which made visualization of the glottis impossible. Several attempts at endotracheal intubation were unsuccessful. Fortunately, the patient was mask ventilated. We awakened the patient and consulted an otolaryngologist, and she was diagnosed with lingual thyroid. After a week, she was operated on using spinal anesthesia.