Laryngogram in Patients with the So-called Foreign Body Sensation in the Pharyngolarynx

Abstract

For the purpose of clarifying the etiological factors of the so-called foreign body sensation of the pharyngolarynx, the author investigated the degree of hypertrophy of the lingual tonsil and the mobility of the pharyngolaryngeal region by means of laryngograms.Forty-two patients suffering from the so-called foreign body sensation of the throat were examined in this study. Twenty nomal subjects were also examined as a control. The results obtained were as follows.1. As compared to the control group, hypertrophy of the lingual tonsil was more frequently found in the cases suffering from the so-called foreign body sensation. Severe hypertrophy was found in 14 cases (33%); moderate hypertrophy was found in 11 cases(26%), and slight hypertrophy was found in 17 cases (41%). In the control group, 5 cases (25%) and 15 cases (75%) showed moderate and slight hypertrophy, respectively, while no cases showed severe hypertrophy.2. The more the lingual tonsil was hypertrophic, the more often it kept touching the epiglottis.3. An apparent abnormality in the mobility of the pharyngolarynx was frequently found in the cases suffering from the so-called foreign body sensation in the throat. The abnormality in mobility was found in the recessus pyriformis, in the true and false vocal cords and in the epiglottis vallecula. For each degree of hypertrophy of the lingual tonsil, the abnormality was found in 33 cases (79%), 32 cases (76%) and 19 cases (45%), respectively. In the control group, it was found in 4 cases (20%), 1 case (5%), and 3 cases (15%), respectively.4. No significant relationship was found between the degree of the hypertrophy of the lingual tonsil and the incidence of abnormal mobility in the pharyngolaryngeal region.