Acute airway obstruction due to benign asymptomatic nodular goiter in the cervical region: A case report

Ito,Tokiko; Shingu,Kiyoshi; Maeda,Chika; Kitazawa,Masato; Mizukami,Yoshiki; Hiraguri,Manabu; Horigome,Naoto; Kaneko,Gengo; Itoh,Nobuo; Ito,Ken‑Ichi

doi:10.3892/ol.2015.3464

September-2015 Volume 10 Issue 3

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September-2015 Volume 10 Issue 3

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Case Report

Acute airway obstruction due to benign asymptomatic nodular goiter in the cervical region: A case report

Authors:
- Tokiko Ito
- Kiyoshi Shingu
- Chika Maeda
- Masato Kitazawa
- Yoshiki Mizukami
- Manabu Hiraguri
- Naoto Horigome
- Gengo Kaneko
- Nobuo Itoh
- Ken‑Ichi Ito
View Affiliations / Copyright

Affiliations: Division of Breast and Endocrine Surgery, Iida Municipal Hospital, Iida, Nagano 395‑8502, Japan
Pages: 1453-1455
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Published online on: July 8, 2015

https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2015.3464
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Abstract

Benign nodular goiter is a common disease. Although large goiters with obstructive symptoms including shortness of breath and dyspnea are a clear indication for surgery, acute upper airway obstruction, particularly in benign cervical goiter cases, is rare. We herein report the case of 46‑year‑old female with acute upper airway obstruction due to benign nodular goiter. The patient had a large and elastic goiter which was more pronounced on the left side of her neck, and surgery was scheduled for within a few months. Three months after the initial presentation, while still waiting for surgery, the patient was brought to the emergency room due to loss of consciousness and breathing difficulty and was immediately intubated. A computed tomography (CT) scan revealed that the trachea was markedly compressed by a nodular lesion in the left lobe, and bilateral pneumonia was also evident. Total thyroidectomy was immediately performed via the supraclavicular approach. The patient had an uneventful postoperative course and recovered well. The resected specimen included a well‑encapsulated solid and cystic mass. Histopathological examination mainly revealed adenomatous goiter. The present case suggests that benign asymptomatic nodular goiter mostly located in the neck may cause acute airway obstruction, even if the nodules are not large. Early surgery should be performed when tracheal deviation and stenosis due to a large goiter is prominent by CT scan.

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Journals

International Journal of Molecular Medicine

International Journal of Oncology

Molecular Medicine Reports

Oncology Reports

Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine

Oncology Letters

Biomedical Reports

Molecular and Clinical Oncology

World Academy of Sciences Journal

International Journal of Functional Nutrition

International Journal of Epigenetics

Medicine International

Acute airway obstruction due to benign asymptomatic nodular goiter in the cervical region: A case report

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