Laryngitis differential diagnosis

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Anthony Gallo, B.S. [2]

Laryngitis must be differentiated from upper respiratory tract infection, vocal fold cyst, nodule, or polyp, and laryngeal stenosis.

Laryngitis must be differentiated from other diseases and conditions which cause inflammation near the larynx. These include:^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

• Upper respiratory tract infection
• Vocal fold cyst, nodule, or polyp
• Laryngeal stenosis
• Spasmodic dysphonia
• Post-nasal drip (chronic upper airway cough syndrome)
• Contact granulomas
• Glottic stenosis
• Thyroarytenoid muscle sulcus
• Reinke’s edema
• Epiglottitis
• Foreign body obstruction
• Subglottic stenosis
• Angioneurotic edema
• Retropharyngeal abscess
• Bacterial tracheitis