Chronic cough as early and main symptom in posterior fossa tumors

Tosse crônica como sintoma inicial e principal em tumores de fossa posterior

Resumo

Introduction: Coughing lasting more than 3 weeks is generally considered chronic and it is self-reported by more than 10% of adults in the community. There are many causes of chronic cough. Nevertheless, intracranial causes for direct cough reflex stimulation are pretty rare and/or underreported. Results and Discussion: We report two similar cases of middle aged subjects presenting with chronic cough demanding surgical resection for benign tumor of posterior fossa and resolution of cough after surgery. Cough as the only symptom is a pretty rare finding and may suggest a lesion specifically attached near cough reflex control center at the level of ponto medullary junction. We highlight the need of considering neuroimage investigation at an early stage of chronic cough investigation.