Laryngeal Hypersensitivity is Correlated With Subglottic Stenosis

Chronic cough, throat clearing, paradoxical vocal fold motion, inducible laryngeal obstruction, and laryngospasm may be secondary to neurogenic laryngeal hypersensitivity (NLH). Patients with these symptoms often score positively on the Newcastle Laryngeal Hypersensitivity Questionnaire (NLHQ), a validated patient-reported outcome measure designed to assess sensations indicative of NLH. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the comorbidity of airway stenosis with NLH. A prospective online survey to an airway stenosis support group gathered NLHQ scores in patients diagnosed with airway stenosis. 747 of 946 patients with idiopathic subglottic stenosis (iSGS) (79%) had a clinically positive score on the NLHQ. Patients may clinically benefit from respiratory retraining techniques used in the treatment of NLH. Future studies will examine the relationship between more objective measures of airway size and inflammatory burden with NLHQ scores to determine if the NLHQ is related to/predictive of iSGS severity.