A Rare Cause of Hoarseness - Cardiovocal Syndrome

Vocal cord palsy presented with hoarseness due to cardiovascular pathology, is an extremely rare entity, better known as Ortner’s syndrome or cardiovocal syndrome. The common underlying pathology is described as compression of the recurrent laryngeal nerve by the pulmonary artery or enlargement of the left atrium. We reported a case of undiagnosed congenital heart disease in a young woman presented to the ENT clinic for hoarseness and discuss the approach to the diagnosis. Even though hoarseness is often encountered in the ENT outpatient department, cardiovascular related hoarseness is indeed a rare findings. Partial and complete resolution of voice have been reported after treatment of the underlying cardiac pathology.