Document 1088
 DOCN  M9591088
 TI    A reappraisal of the radiologic findings of acute inflammation of the
       epiglottis and supraglottic structures in adults.
 DT    9509
 AU    Nemzek WR; Katzberg RW; Van Slyke MA; Bickley LS; Department of
       Diagnostic Radiology, University of California; Davis Medical Center,
       Sacramento 95817, USA.
 SO    AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 1995 Mar;16(3):495-502. Unique Identifier :
       AIDSLINE MED/95313671
 AB    PURPOSE: To evaluate the radiologic characteristic of acute inflammation
       of the epiglottis and supraglottic structures in adults. METHODS: The
       clinical and radiographic findings in 27 adult patients with
       epiglottitis (average age, 43 years; range, 28 to 81 years) were
       compared with those of a control group of asymptomatic subjects (n = 15;
       average age, 48 years; range, 24 to 79 years). Unusual clinical aspects
       in the current series included two patients who were positive for human
       immunodeficiency virus, 1 with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and
       Kaposi sarcoma, 3 with emphysematous epiglottitis, 1 with abscess
       formation, and 1 with laryngeal carcinoma. One patient required
       emergency tracheostomy. One patient died of pneumonia. RESULTS: The
       ratio of the soft-tissue parameters to the anteroposterior width of the
       C-4 vertebral body yielded three key parameters of high statistical
       significance in adult epiglottitis. The ratio of the width of the
       epiglottis to the anteroposterior width of C-4 should not be greater
       than 0.33 (sensitivity, 96%; specificity, 100%). The ratio of the
       prevertebral soft tissue to C-4 should not exceed 0.5 (sensitivity, 37%;
       specificity, 100%) and the ratio of the width of the hypopharyngeal
       airway to the width of C-4 should be less than 1.5 (sensitivity, 44%;
       specificity, 87%). The aryepiglottic folds were enlarged in 85%, and the
       arytenoids were swollen in 70% of the patient population (specificity,
       100%). CONCLUSION: These defined radiologic parameters should aid in the
       diagnosis of acute epiglottitis in adults.
 DE    Adult  Aged  Aged, 80 and over  Airway Obstruction/*RADIOGRAPHY
       AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections/RADIOGRAPHY  Cervical
       Vertebrae/RADIOGRAPHY  Epiglottitis/*RADIOGRAPHY  Female  Haemophilus
       Infections/RADIOGRAPHY  Human  Laryngeal Edema/RADIOGRAPHY  Male  Middle
       Age  Pneumococcal Infections/RADIOGRAPHY  Reference Values
       Streptococcal Infections/RADIOGRAPHY  JOURNAL ARTICLE

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