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Vocal fold palsy after use of the laryngeal mask airway

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 June 2007

Hamid Daya ,
William J. Fawcett  and
Neil Weir
Hamid Daya
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology and Anaesthetics, The Royal Surrey County Hospital, Egerton Road, Guildford, UK
William J. Fawcett
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology and Anaesthetics, The Royal Surrey County Hospital, Egerton Road, Guildford, UK
Neil Weir*
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology and Anaesthetics, The Royal Surrey County Hospital, Egerton Road, Guildford, UK
*
Address for correspondence: Mr Neil Weir, F.R.C.S., Departments of Otolaryngology, The Royal Surrey County Hospital, Egerton Road, Guildford GU2 5XX
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Abstract

We report two cases of left vocal fold palsy following use of the laryngeal mask airway. In both cases anaesthesia was uneventful with a duration of about 60 minutes. It is proposed that high intra-cuff pressures induced during anaesthesia resulted in distension of the hypopharynx and subsequent neuropraxia of the motor branches of the recurrent laryngeal nerve and the external branch of the superior laryngeal nerve.

Keywords

Vocal fold paresisAnaesthesia, inhalationLaryngeal mask airway, complications
Type
Clinical Records
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 110 , Issue 4 , April 1996 , pp. 383 - 384
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 1996

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