Throat symptoms Flashcards
What is the larynx in front of the hypo pharynx divided into?
Glottis- vocal cords
Supraglottis- false cords, the aryepiglottic folds, and the epiglottis
Subglottis- area below the vocal cords to the level of the cricoid cartilage.
What are the features of tonsillitis?
throat pain which is usually bilateral with odynophagia (pain on swallowing), systemic upset, pyrexia and lethargy of acute onset which lasts for 5 or more days, and usually
Rarely unilateral
Exceptional in patients >35
What are the features of quinsy (peritonsillar abscess)
May develop out of acute tonsillitis
Usually between the tonsil and the faucial pillar
systemic upset, odynophagia and trismus
What are the features of chronic pharyngitis?
redness, sometime granular nobbles in the posterior oropharyngeal wall
Redness located laterally at or behind the posterior faucial pillar- post-nasal cause (chronic suppurative sinusitis)
Redness or granular spotty tissue be in the middle of the posterior pharyngeal- snorer
What is the cause of pharyngitis?
With tonsillitis: diphtheria and infectious mononucleosis
Most is viral: rhinoviruses, coronavirus, influenza A and B virus, herpes simplex and zoster
What are the causes of chronic pharyngitis?
Chronic sinusitis above, chronic bronchitis or bronchiectasis below, chronic gastro-oesophageal reflux below, and local gingivitis or dental caries when very severe may give rise to infected lymphoid tissue in the pharynx
Smoking and industrial fumes
What is chronic specific pharyngitis associated with?
Bacterial organisms: syphilis, tuberculosis, toxoplasmosis, leprosy, scleroma.
What nerve causes patients to cough when instruments are introduced into the ear canal?
The auricular branch of the vagus nerve supplies a small part of the auricle and roughly the posterior half of the external auditory meatus and tympanic membrane. This branch of the vagus nerve is also called Arnold’s nerve or the Alderman’s nerve
What are the most common causes of referred otalgia?
Tonsillitis and tonsillectomy, dental lesions and ulcerations and neoplasm’s of the upper aerodigestive tract
What is dysphagia?
difficulty with the act of swallowing, precipitated by pharyngeal movement, which occurs within 5 seconds of having initiated that movement”. This symptom is active and associated with swallowing.
What is globs pharyngeus?
Sensation of pressure or tightness of or in the throat, and is not associated with the act of swallowing, and frequently is relieved by swallowing.
What is the classification of aspiration?
prandial (related to swallowing), salivary, or reflux
What is prandial aspiration?
classified by the phases of pharyngeal swallow and may be simply of one type but more usual are mixed phases, depending of the underlying aetiology, not infrequently neurologic:
Pre-prandial – before the act of swallowing: – Cleft palate, post-tonsillectomy, tongue tumour surgery.
Prandial – during the act of swallowing when there is inadequate airway protection during the bolus transit through the pharynx. Usually associated with vocal cord palsy or after a stroke.
Post-prandial – after swallowing and occurs due to inhalation of residue which remains near the laryngeal inlet. Cause include pharyngeal pouch, oesophageal stenosis etc.
What is associated with dysphonia?
Chronic laryngitis
Laryngeal cancer
Refer all patients with more than 6 weeks of hoarseness
What are congenital neck lumps?
Thyroglossal duct cysts are found in the mid line of the neck in children (and occasionally adults) and move on swallowing
Brachial cyst located at the upper third anterior border of the sternocleido mastoid muscle, usually as a painless swelling.
