[Laryngopyocele. Rare cause of relapsing cervical infections]

A laryngopyocele forms when a laryngocele, as a dilatation of the laryngeal ventricle, becomes infected and fills with mucopus. Laryngopyoceles are rare, as only few cases have been previously reported in the literature. The case of a 75-year-old woman who was treated twice because of a deep cervical infection is described. First of all the cause remained unknown but 3 years after the first manifestation air could be aspirated from a now non-infected neck swelling. A laryngocele was revealed as the cause of the relapsing infection. The surgical resection led to a final healing and the patient remained free from disease. When dealing with a clinical picture of an unknown deep cervical infection, an external or mixed laryngocele should be considered in the differential diagnosis as a rare cause.