Dysphonia--a rare early symptom of Ehlers--Danlos syndrome?

ABSTRACT

Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is a connective tissue disorder characterized by joint hypermobility, skin hyperextensibility and cutaneous fragility. It usually presents in young adults and is rarely diagnosed in children. Voice involvement in young children, to our knowledge, has not been reported in the literature. We present two cases with dysphonia from birth and an eventual diagnosis of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. The syndrome and its relevance to voice pathology are discussed. We suggest that Ehlers-Danlos syndrome should be considered as an underlying diagnosis in atypical presentations of dysphonia in young children.