[Twelve cases of laryngeal tuberculosis]

Between 1986 and 1990 we had twelve patients (ten males, two females, 19-65 years of age) with laryngeal tuberculosis who complained hoarseness and whose larynges were examined by fiberscopes. Chest roentgenograms revealed cavities in ten and in seven the lesions were extensive (Grade 3 according to the classification of Japanese Society for Tuberculosis). In all patients sputum smears were positive. Both patient's and doctor's delays were longer than those of patients with pulmonary tuberculosis without laryngeal involvements. Group infection was the source of infection in one patient. Since the diagnosis of laryngeal tuberculosis is difficult to make on clinical basis, it is important to make fiberscopic examinations of the larynx and do biopsies in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis who complain hoarseness.