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Cough after laryngeal herpes zoster: a new aspect of post-herpetic sensory disturbance

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 January 2014

B Ling ,
D Novakovic  and
L Sulica
B Ling*
Affiliation:
Christchurch School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand
D Novakovic
Affiliation:
ENT, Northern Clinical School, University of Sydney, NSW, Australia
L Sulica
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York, USA
*
Address for correspondence: Mr Benjamin Ling, University of Otago, 2 Riccarton Av, PO Box 4345, Christchurch 8140, New Zealand Fax: +64 3 364 0525 E-mail: benlhl@gmail.com
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Abstract

Objective:

Although neurogenic cough is increasingly recognised, its pathophysiology remains obscure. We describe two cases of chronic cough following laryngeal herpes zoster, a rarely described manifestation of varicella-zoster virus reactivation, and suggest that this may be analogous to post-herpetic neuralgia. The same mechanisms may cause both phenomena.

Case reports:

We describe two cases of chronic cough persisting for more than three months following an acute attack of laryngeal herpes zoster.

Conclusion:

Neuronal damage by varicella-zoster virus results in irritable nociceptors and deafferentation, mechanisms known to cause post-herpetic neuralgia. When the vagus nerve is affected, as in laryngeal herpes zoster, the result may be a chronic cough. Similar damage may underlie chronic neurogenic cough in other contexts.

Keywords

Herpes ZosterLaryngeal DiseasesVagus Nerve DiseasesCoughNeuralgia, Postherpetic
Type
Clinical Records
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 128 , Issue 2 , February 2014 , pp. 209 - 211
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 2014 

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