Vocal Cord Dysfunction — An Overlooked Cause of Respiratory Symptoms

Vocal cord dysfunction — a paradoxical adduction of the vocal cords during inspiration — is an occasionally overlooked cause of wheezing, stridor, or dyspnea. In this brief report, allergy and pulmonary specialists describe a 15-year-old girl who complained of “difficulty breathing and wheezing” during competitive swimming. An extensive evaluation for asthma was negative, and empiric asthma therapy was ineffective. The patient’s father videotaped her during and just after swimming and was able to capture obvious inspiratory stridor. Review of the father’s video by the patient’s physicians led to the correct diagnosis; the video can be viewed with the online version of this article (clip E3). Another video accompanying the article (clip E1) …