[Laryngeal tuberculosis is not such a rare disease]

Laryngeal tuberculosis used to be the most common disease of the larynx at the beginning of the 20th century. As the incidence of tuberculosis decreased, laryngeal tuberculosis almost disappeared. The increase in the incidence of tuberculosis during the last two decades was accompanied by an increase in the incidence of laryngeal tuberculosis. Laryngeal tuberculosis is characterized by a wide variety of symptoms ranging from a process restricted only to the larynx, to a multiple system disease. The laryngeal findings are not specific and may imitate other chronic diseases and tumors of the larynx. This complexity encumbers diagnosis. In this study, we describe the changes in the population effected, the means of transmission and the appearance of laryngeal tuberculosis during the 20th century. We present the case histories of three patients exemplifying the existing variety in the clinical appearance of laryngeal tuberculosis.