Congenital disorders of the larynx , trachea and bronchi

The true incidence of congenital deformities of the upper airway is not known for certain, but van den Broek and Brinkman (1979) quoted an incidence for congenital laryngeal defects of between 1:10.000 and 1:50.000 births. Of 219 children with stridor who underwent endoscopic examination, Holinger (1980) found 81% to have evidence of congenital abnormalities of the larynx, trachea or bronchi. Of the total, 60% had abnormalities of the larynx, 16% had tracheal abnormalities and 5% had congenital anomalies of the bronchi. Significantly, 45% of the patients had more than one congenital abnormality; it is thus mandatory that a full endoscopic examination be carried out in all children presenting with congenital stridor (Shugar and Healy, 1980).