呼吸困難を主訴とした再発性多発軟骨炎例

Abstract

Relapsing polychondritis is a relatively rare autoimmune disease which shows the recurrence of progressive inflammation of cartilaginous structures such as auricular and nasal cartilage. Laryngotracheal involvement occurs in more than 50% of cases during the course of the disease, which sometimes results in airway obstruction. We report a case of relapsing polychondritis with the initial symptom of dyspnea. A 52-year-old female was hospitalized with hoarseness and dyspnea. Fiberscopic examination showes edema of the larynx and trachea. She required a tracheostomy due to airway stenosis. The manifestation of saddle nose and histological findings regarding the tracheal cartilage led to a diagnosis of relapsing polychondritis. After steroid therapy was started, the tracheal chondritis was improved. However, a T-tube was still positioned in the larynx because dyspnea and laryngeal stenosis did not show improvement.