Superior Thyroid Cornu Syndrome: An Unusual Cause of Cervical Dysphagia

Mortensen, Melissa; Ivey, Chandra M.; Iida, Minoru; Woo, Peak

doi:10.1177/000348940911801202

Cited by 19 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Smith et al presented 11 patients with asymmetric and damaged superior thyroid cornu which resulted in the posttraumatic odynophagia [8]. Similar cases were reported by Nadig et al and Mortensen et al [1,3]. The neck trauma seems to be the most likely cause of STCS.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

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Extended Superior Cornu of Thyroid Cartilage Causing Dysphagia and Throat Pain

et al. 2015

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Superior thyroid cornu syndrome (STCS) is an abnormality of superior cornu of thyroid cartilage which can produce dysphagia, odynophagia or throat pain. The causes of this condition are congenital or acquired. A 51-year-old Caucasian male presented with 4-month history of dysphagia and throat pain. Flexible endoscopy of the larynx revealed an ulceration on the left laryngeal surface of epiglottis. No malignant process was confirmed with histopathological examination, but protruding submucosal mass was detected. CT of the neck showed the ossified and extended left superior thyroid cornu. Surgical procedure was performed to resect the extended cornu. The patient was followed up in 2 weeks and presented no symptoms. STCS is a rare cause of chronic dysphagia or sore throat. Laryngologists should suspect it when malignancy of the larynx is ruled out. Surgery is the only known therapy, but it is not always effective.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

“…Ossification of superior thyroid cornu is a rare cause of symptoms such as dysphagia, odynophagia, throat pain or foreign body sensation [1]. Most of the cases concerning the disorders of the thyroid cartilage include a displacement of the superior cornu, either following neck trauma or congenital [2,3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extended Superior Cornu of Thyroid Cartilage Causing Dysphagia and Throat Pain

et al. 2015

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“…There are very few cases that describe a hypertrophic superior thyroid cornu causing symptoms of dysphagia and only a select few have had surgical intervention; only two of which were endoscopic performed in patients with no previous head and neck surgery [3,4]. This report illustrates a challenging case of dysphagia where the patient had a long history of head and neck AVM and a new onset of swallowing problems.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Submucosal Bulge in the Hypopharynx Causing Dysphagia

2014

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A 54-year-old male presented to our clinic for consultation due to a new onset of dysphagia. The current symptoms of dysphagia had started 2 years prior to the visit and had been progressively getting worse. He also had severe pain and tightness in the left neck and occasionally had the sensation of choking resulting in the patient requiring a soft diet. The patient did not complain of any trouble with breathing. He had been medically treated for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in the past which was not successful in relieving his symptoms. A previous swallow study had been performed and the results showed no abnormalities.He also has a history of multiple surgeries and had previously been treated by multiple Otolaryngologists for extensive neck arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). The AVMs were located in the nasopharynx, left neck at levels II and III, as well as the sublingual, submandibular and parotid regions. His previous surgeries include a left neck dissection, mandibulotomy, parotidectomy and sclerotherapy for the treatment of the AVMs. His last surgery for the AVMs was 7 years prior to the patient's presentation to our clinic.On physical exam, there was scarring from his previous surgeries on the left side of the neck as well as residual AVM on the left side of the neck. A transnasal flexible laryngoscopy exam was performed in our clinic which showed a bulge in the submucosa of the left supraglottic area and in the left nasopharynx. This supraglottic bulge extended towards the midline touching the epiglottis. The submucosal lesion also partially obstructed the left piriform sinus opening. The patient had several MRIs of the neck which showed residual AVM in the left nasopharynx and soft tissue density in the left supraglottic area. A computed tomography angiography (CTA) was ordered to for evaluation of the extension of the AVM towards the supraglottic area and piriform sinus opening, however, no AVM was identified in that area (Fig. 1).

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“…Superior thyroid cornu syndrome represents pharyngeal airway indentation and dysphagia caused by prominent ossified STC . Other causes of cervical dysphagia include pharyngeal web and cervical spondylosis.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Superior thyroid cornu syndrome may present with dysphagia, odynophagia and globus sensation . Clinical differentials include laryngeal or hypopharyngeal cancer, gastroesophageal reflux and neurological disorders.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Unusual cause of dysphagia: Superior thyroid cornu syndrome

Indiran

2017

Digestive Endoscopy

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pyriform sinus and posterior hypopharyngeal wall. 1 On examination under anesthesia with palpation, the lesion is of bony or cartilage consistency with normal overlying mucosa. CT neck with reconstruction and virtual laryngoscopy demonstrates the prominent ossified STC exquisitely, unequivocally diagnosing STCS and should be offered to all patients with complaints of cervical dysphagia. 4 Endoscopic resection of protruding cornu tip is the treatment of choice and relieves symptoms significantly. 1,4 REFERENCES 1 Mortensen M, Ivey CM, Iida M, Woo P. Superior thyroid cornu syndrome: an unusual cause of cervical dysphagia. Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol. 2009 Dec; 118(12): 833-8. 2 Nadig SK, Uppal S, Back GW, Coatesworth AP, Grace AR. Foreign body sensation in the throat due to displacement of the superior cornu of the thyroid cartilage: two cases and a literature review. J Laryngol Otol. 2006 Jul; 120(7): 608-9. 3 Lin D, Fischbein N, Eisele DW. Odynophagia secondary to variant thyroid cartilage anatomy. Dysphagia 2005; 20: 232-4. 4 Hajiioannou JK, Florou V, Kousoulis P. Superior thyroid cornu anatomical variation causing globus pharyngeous and dysphagia. Figure 2 Comparison of turning radius of the scopes. (a) Short double-balloon enteroscopy (① 15 mm; ② 45 mm; distal end diameter, 9.4 mm). (b) Pediatric colonoscopy (① 22 mm; ② 50 mm; distal end diameter, 11.7 mm). Values ① and ② were measured by us; unofficial data.

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Superior Thyroid Cornu Syndrome: An Unusual Cause of Cervical Dysphagia

Cited by 19 publications

References 7 publications

Extended Superior Cornu of Thyroid Cartilage Causing Dysphagia and Throat Pain

Extended Superior Cornu of Thyroid Cartilage Causing Dysphagia and Throat Pain

Submucosal Bulge in the Hypopharynx Causing Dysphagia

Unusual cause of dysphagia: Superior thyroid cornu syndrome

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