Sudden death and laryngeal papillomatosis: a case report

Laryngeal papillomatosis is an uncommon respiratory disease. Often misdiagnosed, it can cause acute respiratory insufficiency, quickly fatal if not promptly faced. A case of sudden death due to laryngeal papillomatosis is described in a woman presenting to the Emergency Department (ED). Laryngeal obstruction was not diagnosed in previous medical examinations nor recognised at the time of attempted intubation in ED; only post-mortem investigation allowed discovering a large fleshy mass occluding the larynx in the region of the vocal folds.