Stridor in the Paedriatric patient: a descriptive study

Abstract

Introduction: Stridor is a musical respiratory sound, appearing predominantly during inspiration and caused by a partial obstruction of the respiratory passages that results in turbulant airflow in the airway. Laringomalacia is the commonest cause of stridor (65-75%) and is associated with 2 or more anomalies of the airway in 15% of cases. There is little information in the Chilean literature on this topic.

Objective: We reviewed our experience of flexible brochoscopy (FB) in the diagnosis of stridor during a 10 year period.

Patients and Methods: 806 FB were performed between march 1993 and july 2003, with a fiber-optic FB Olympus BF3C20 and BF3C30. In 133 (16,5%) cases the indication was for stridor. All patients received sedation, oxygen via nasal canula and had continuous cardio-respiratory monitoring.

Results: The average age was 10,6 months (range 5 days to 71 months), there were 74 males (55,6%), stridor was congenital in 104 (78,2%) of cases. Laryngomalacia was the cause in 95 cases (71,4%), subglottic stenosis in 13 (9,8%) and tracheomalacia in 10 (7,5%). Of the 95 cases of laryngomalacia, 19 (20%) were associated with other lesions of the airway, that included tracheal bronchus, tracheomalacia and vocal cord paralysis. Our findings are comparable with previously decribed finding in the international literature.

Conclusion: children with stridor should have a complete investigation of their airways.