Laryngeal tuberculosis

Laryngeal tuberculosis is the most frequent granulomatous disease of the larynx. The disease has changed its behaviour with regard to average age of onset site and type of lesion. Laryngeal tuberculosis is usually secondary to, or at least contemporary with, pulmonary tuberculosis. Other recents studies, however, conclude by accepting a frequency of up to 20% for primary laryngeal tuberculosis. The age of presentation is between 41-50 years. Among the risk factors identified are the consumption of tobacco, alcohol, malnutrition and immunodeficiency. The predominant symptom was dysphonia (90%) either in isolation or accompanied by odynophagia (45%). Today, the ulcero-infiltrative lesions which predominantly affected the posterior larynx are not observed. At the present time the macroscopic appearance corresponds to a diffuse oedema or to a pseudo-tumoral image located in any zone. Any non-specific chronic laryngitis of poor evolution should lead us to suspect a laryngeal tuberculosis.