A Case of Saccular Cyst with Extralaryngeal Extension Through the Cricothyroid Membrane

A saccular cyst of the larynx, a lesion originating from obstruction of the orifice between the saccule and the laryngeal ventricles, can cause airway obstruction. Herein, we report a rare case of a saccular cyst extending into the extralaryngeal space. A 19-year-old male patient presented to us with complaints of hoarseness of the voice and sore throat. He gave a history of having received treatment for a laryngeal cyst at the age of 1 year 7 months. Flexible fiberoptic laryngoscopic examination showed a large submucosal mass in the left laryngeal ventricle extending into the subglottis and the false vocal cord. Computed tomography revealed a 3-cm cystic lesion in the left lateral part of the larynx, extending into the extralaryngeal space through the cricothyroid membrane. The lesion was completely removed by an external approach under a vertical midline thyrotomy after tracheostomy. Based on the clinical, imaging and histopathological findings, we made a final diagnosis of a lateral saccular cyst. There has been no obvious recurrence for a year since the surgical resection. A vertical midline thyrotomy approach was effective to remove the cyst with a good prognosis.