Medical Specialties Commons^™

Treatment Of Intractable Neurogenic Cough With Cricopharyngeal Myotomy, Anne Lee Durstenfeld, Bs, Joseph Spiegel, Md, Mauritis Boon, Md

Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery Presentations and Grand Rounds

Objectives: Neuropathic cough that is incompletely responsive to medical therapy may be due to cricopharyngeal hypertonicity. The objective was to describe the utility of cricopharyngeal myotomy in alleviating symptoms of intractable neuropathic cough.

Study Design: Retrospective review.

Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed for three patients who underwent cricopharyngeal myotomy for intractable cough. Trigger phenomena, previous evaluation and treatment, and outcomes after surgery, namely patient perception of improvement and medication use after surgery, were assessed and documented.

Results: After cricopharyngeal myotomy, all three patients noted symptomatic improvement and were weaned off medication. Continued improvement was noted at follow …