A special place among the benign formations of the larynx is occupied by laryngeal papillomatosis. This is an overgrowth of epithelial tissue that is caused by the human papilloma virus. There is a risk that the disease may recur after surgery.
Papilloma infection occurs during childbirth. The tumor most often occurs in the male population in adulthood and in children. Laryngeal papillomatosis in children occurs between the ages of one and a half to five years. For children, the disease poses a serious danger, because it is characterized by hoarseness, stridor and severe respiratory failure.
As a rule, laryngeal papillomatosis manifests itself in the form of leg warts . Sometimes papillomas resemble the appearance of cauliflower.
Laryngeal papillomatosis can be caused by viral infectious diseases (acute or chronic), the development of which is accompanied by occupational or domestic irritants or infectious diseases (for example, measles, scarlet fever, diphtheria, etc.). Disorders of the endocrine and nervous systems have some effect on the development of the disease.
Laryngeal papillomatosis, the symptoms of which we will now describe, must be treated after a thorough diagnosis. As a rule, the degree of manifestation of the symptoms of the disease indicates the level of its complexity:
- The most important sign of papillomatosis is voice disturbance , hoarseness, aphonia.
- Cough, which manifests itself even in the early stages of the development of the disease.
- When the papillomas begin to grow, breathing becomes difficult, with a significant spread of papillomas, stenosis can occur.
The most intensive development and relapse of laryngeal papillomatosis is in childhood. As a rule, papillomas in the bulk are located on the vocal folds. Their growth occurs in those parts of the respiratory tract that are located above and below the vocal cords.
Diagnosis, which allows you to determine the degree of development of the disease, is to carry out endovideoscopy of the larynx, a study of the histology of distant laryngeal formations. Sometimes studies are prescribed using computed tomography in order to determine the prevalence of papillomas.
Treatment of laryngeal papillomatosis is complicated by the fact that the level of relapse is high. As a rule, the main method that eliminates laryngeal papillomatosis is surgical intervention. When relapse occurs, there is a need to use combination treatment. With this treatment, surgical removal of papillomas is performed, after which a long course of immunomodulating and antiviral therapy is prescribed. However, very often papillomas in the larynx are formed again, and there is a need for a second operation.
Many clinics, in order to reduce the likelihood of relapse and increase the period of remission of the disease, after removal of the papillomas, lubricate the mucous membrane of the larynx with podophylline and some other chemotherapeutic drugs.
Foreign medicine began the active use of ultrasound in the treatment of papillomatosis. With this method of treatment, external ultrasound exposure to papillomas or direct laryngoscopy is performed. This method is used only for general anesthesia.
Moscow medicine offers the option of treatment with phonophoresis of propedin, which involves the introduction of ultrasonically prospedin ointment after removal of papillomas.
If a small amount of papillomas has formed, this method of treatment helps to completely remove them and significantly reduce the risk of relapse. In many cases, the disease was completely cured.