• C A Langford, M C Sneller, C W Hallahan, G S Hoffman, W A Kammerer, C Talar-Williams, A S Fauci, and R S Lebovics.
• Laboratory of Immunoregulation, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
• Arthritis Rheum. 1996 Oct 1; 39 (10): 1754-60.

ObjectiveTo determine the clinical features and optimal treatment of subglottic stenosis (SGS) in patients with-Wegener's granulomatosis (WG).MethodsReview of 43 patients with SGS and treatment of 20 patients with intratracheal dilation-glucocorticoid injection therapy.ResultsSGS developed in 43 of 189 patients with WG who were followed up at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center. The diagnosis of SGS occurred in the absence of other features of active. WG in 21 of 43 patients (49%). In 21 patients (49%), SGS began while the patient was receiving systemic immunosuppressive therapy for disease activity involving other sites. Tracheostomy was required in 10 of 18 patients (56%) who were treated with systemic immunosuppressive therapy. In 20 patients treated with intratracheal therapy, none required tracheostomy and 6 with previous tracheostomies were decannulated.ConclusionSGS often occurs independently of other features of active WG and is frequently unresponsive to systemic immunosuppressive therapy. Intratracheal dilation-injection therapy provides a safe and effective treatment for WG-associated SGS and, in the absence of major organ disease activity, should be used without concomitant systemic immunosuppressive agents.

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