Aldeia da Silva Rita, Ferraz Sandra Catarina, Barros Rua Inês, Martins Sandrina, Ramalho Helena
Pediatrics, Hospital de Braga, Braga, PRT.
Pediatrics, Unidade Local de Saúde do Alto Minho, Viana do Castelo, PRT.
Cureus. 2024 Nov 19;16(11):e74010. doi: 10.7759/cureus.74010. eCollection 2024 Nov.
This report details a case of acute idiopathic velopharyngeal insufficiency in a previously healthy eight-year-old girl, presenting with sudden voice alteration and nasal regurgitation following mild respiratory symptoms. Physical examination identified unilateral velar paralysis with open rhinolalia, without additional neurological deficits. Extensive diagnostic evaluation, including nasopharyngoscopy, cerebral and cervical imaging, and infectious serologies, yielded unremarkable findings. In the absence of spontaneous improvement after one week, the patient received a brief course of prednisolone and was referred for speech therapy, leading to full resolution of symptoms within one month. Acute idiopathic velopharyngeal insufficiency is an infrequent condition in pediatric populations, commonly associated with viral infections and typically self-limiting. This case underscores the necessity of ruling out alternative etiologies and maintaining follow-up to confirm the benign trajectory of the disorder.
本报告详细描述了一名此前健康的8岁女孩急性特发性腭咽功能不全的病例，该女孩在出现轻微呼吸道症状后突然声音改变并伴有鼻反流。体格检查发现单侧软腭麻痹伴开放性鼻音，无其他神经功能缺损。广泛的诊断评估，包括鼻咽镜检查、脑部和颈部影像学检查以及感染血清学检查，结果均无异常。一周后症状未自发改善，患者接受了短期泼尼松龙治疗，并被转诊接受言语治疗，症状在一个月内完全缓解。急性特发性腭咽功能不全在儿科人群中并不常见，通常与病毒感染有关，且一般为自限性疾病。该病例强调了排除其他病因并持续随访以确认病情良性发展轨迹的必要性。
