Sudden Death from Acute Epiglottitis and Epiglottic Abscess in Adult

Acute epiglottitis and epiglottic abscess are forms of acute inflammation of the epiglottis and adjacent structures. They are potentially life-threatening conditions and likely to be underdiagnosed or misdiagnosed in adults. Traditionally, acute epiglottitis is regarded as a disease of children; however, its prevalence among children has decreased owing to vaccination. In contrast, the prevalence of adult epiglottitis has increased steadily. Moreover, epiglottic abscess formation is not an uncommon complication of adult epiglottitis. Epiglottic abscess is reported to be a predictor of airway obstruction and immediate airway intervention is needed in this clinical situation [1]. Herein, we describe the autopsy findings of two cases of sudden death from acute epiglottitis complicated by epiglottic abscess in adults, identified during postmortem examination.