title: Congenital laryngomucocoele: a rare cause for CHAOS.
abstract: Congenital high airway obstruction syndrome (CHAOS) is a rare but life-threatening condition that results from the obstruction of the upper airways.We describe a female newborn, from a Grávida II, Para 0, 36-year-old woman, with a routine ultrasound at 30 weeks' gestation that showed polyhydramnios. She delivered a live-born female baby at 36 weeks without any dismorphic features but with respiratory distress. Attempts at endotracheal intubation were unsuccessful due to the presence of a mass obstructing the larynx. The reanimation process was stopped after 20 minutes. Post-mortem examination demonstrated the presence of a total occlusion of the larynx by a laryngomucocoele. Laryngocele, a congenital cyst of the larynx, occurs rarely and hardly ever as a cause of CHAOS. What is more, laryngomucocoele has not been previously reported as a cause of CHAOS. These conditions represent a neonatal emergency with reserved prognosis unless diagnosed antenatally allowing for a programmed ex utero intrapartum treatment (EXIT) by performing tracheostomy while maintaining the placental circulation.
authors.affiliation: Hospital Fernando Fonseca, Pediatrics, IC 19, Amadora, 2720-276, Portugal.
authors.forename: Manuel Sousa
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Cunha
authors.forename: Patrícia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Janeiro
authors.forename: Rosário
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fernandes
authors.forename: Helena
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Carreiro
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Laurini