Acute neck tendonitis with dyspnea: A case report

BACKGROUND: Longus colli tendinitis (LCT) with dyspnea is a relatively less-reported condition in the literature, and physicians should be aware of its existence. Misdiagnosis of this condition may cause unnecessary treatment for dyspnea. CASE SUMMARY: Herein, we report the case of a 40-year-old man with acute neck tendonitis. The patient presented to the pneumology department clinic with a complaint of acute neck tendonitis with dyspnea. An emergency cervical magnetic resonance examination was performed, and the preliminary diagnosis was “acute longus cervicalis tendinitis.” After aggressive medical treatment, the symptoms obviously improved. CONCLUSION: LCT is a self-limiting disease that usually improves after three to seven days of conservative treatment following a definite diagnosis. However, owing to its insidious onset and complex clinical manifestations, most relevant personnel are not fully understood. The definite diagnosis of LCT is based on a comprehensive understanding of the triad, rare symptoms, and the clear identification of cervical 1 and 2 levels calcification and prevertebral edema by medical imaging examination, especially magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography.