Congenital high airway obstruction syndrome (CHAOS): discussing the role and limits of prenatal diagnosis starting from a single-center case series

Abstract

Objectives: we aimed to report our experience about congenital high airway obstruction syndrome (CHAOS) that is a rare and fatal congenital anomaly ; laryngeal atresia is the most frequent cause. Sonographic findings are enlarged echogenic lungs, dilated trachea, and ascites. Methods: we performed a single-center case series analysis collecting antenatally through ultrasound examination, and some of them confirmed by autopsy. Results: we report six cases of CHAOS diagnosed by antenatal ultrasonography between 2007 and 2013. Conclusion: to date literature provides very few individual case reports. This work describes typical sonographic findings of this syndrome and it underlines the importance of early prenatal diagnosis to improve prognosis thought an ex utero intra-partum treatment, that seems to be the only chance of survival for the affected fetus.