Laryngotracheal stenosis requiring emergency tracheostomy as the first manifestation of childhood-relapsing polychondritis

Abstract

Relapsing polychondritis is a rare childhood disorder of unknown etiology, characterized by inflammatory, recurrent and destructive cartilage lesions. The chondritis could be widespread and involves generally laryngeal and auricular hyaline cartilages. We described a 9 years and 4 months old girl, who presented recurrent acute laryngotracheitis and laryngotracheal stenosis, which were the first manifestations of relapsing polychondritis, and was submitted to emergency tracheostomy. She also had ear condritis and arthritis, being treated with prednisolone and methotrexate. In conclusion, we reported a rare case of relapsing polychondritis that presented a life-threatening laryngo-tracheo-bronchial disorder requiring tracheostomy. We suggest that the diagnosis of relapsing polychondritis should be considered for patients who present recurrent acute laryngotracheitis with other types of condritis, as well as musculoskeletal manifestations.