Surgical treatment of severe laryngomalacia: a retrospective study of 11 cases

Laryngomalacia is the most frequent congenital abnormality of the larynx, accounting for approximately 60-75% of congenital stridor cases. Despite its benign and self-limited aspects, 10% of cases require intervention. Currently, supraglottoplasty is considered the standard treatment of severe laryngomalacia. OBJECTIVE: To describe the experience of the authors in the surgical treatment of patients with severe laryngomalacia. Methodology: A retrospective study. METHOD: The medical records of 11 consecutive cases of severe laryngomalacia who underwent surgical treatment between 2003 and 2012 were analyzed for age, gender, symptoms, associated diseases, surgical technique employed, extubation time, surgical complications, length of hospital stay and clinical outcome. RESULTS: Of the 11 cases of severe laryngomalacia, six patients (54.5%) were operated with the use of CO(2) laser and five patients (45.5%) were submitted to the cold technique. Only 1 patient (9.1%) required surgical reintervention. There were no cases of surgical complications. All patients had clinical improvement. CONCLUSION: Supraglottoplasty proved to be effective and safe in the treatment of severe laryngomalacia.