The Hoarse Voice of an Aortic Aneurysm Rupture: Ortner's Syndrome

Aortic aneurysm ruptures are associated with high fatality. The timely diagnosis of a ruptured aortic aneurysm can be challenging for the emergency physician when hoarseness of voice is the only presenting symptom. Ortner's syndrome was first reported in 1897 as a case of left recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis secondary to mitral stenosis and left atrial enlargement. In this case report, we describe a unique association of aortic aneurysm rupture with dysphonia presenting as Ortner's syndrome.

An 81-year-old man presented to our emergency department (ED) with an acute hoarse voice. Physical examination of his cardiovascular and neurologic systems was normal. Further evaluation with a nasoendoscope revealed a left vocal cord palsy. Consideration of Ortner's syndrome prompted an early call for thoracic imaging. A computed tomogram of the aorta showed a contained aortic aneurysm rupture with an acute hyperdense periaortic hematoma at the aortic arch. As our patient was a poor surgical candidate in view of concurrent comorbidities, he was managed conservatively. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: We identified a unique presentation of a painless, ruptured aortic aneurysm. This is a fatal diagnosis that all emergency physicians struggle to make in a timely fashion. The imminent aortic aneurysm rupture, masked by the absence of pain in our patient, could have resulted in a potentially catastrophic event. In the evaluation of a patient with hoarse voice, early consideration of Ortner's syndrome could result in timely diagnosis of a ruptured aortic aneurysm.