Long-term Outcomes of Juvenile Onset Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis with Pulmonary Involvement

Juvenile onset recurrent respiratory papillomatosis: What do we know in 2024 ?

Juvenile onset recurrent respiratory papillomatosis is a lifelong benign squamous lesion associated with HPV infection, particularly HPV6 and HPV11 genotypes. These lesions are rare, but can lead to laryngeal obturations, which can cause disabling dyspnea, or transform into squamous cell carcinoma. The aim here is to provide an epidemiological, biological and clinical overview of this pathology, particularly in children, in order to understand the issues at stake in terms of research and the development of medical and therapeutic management tools.

Systemic bevacizumab for treatment of recurrent respiratory papillomatosis

OBJECTIVES

To characterize treatment response of recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) including adult-onset RRP (AORRP) and juvenile-onset RRP (JORRP) to systemic bevacizumab (bev), and share our treatment regimen experience.

METHODS

Patients were enrolled in bev treatment based on a pathologically confirmed diagnosis of squamous papilloma. According to lesion characteristics and medical history, systemic bev was used as preoperative adjuvant therapy, postoperative adjuvant therapy, or primary therapy. The assessment of treatment response relied on the morphological changes of lesions. Vocalization and voice-related quality of life were evaluated using the voice handicap index-30 (VHI-30) for adults and the pediatric VHI (pVHI) for children. Adverse effect was monitored through patient self-reported symptoms and regular follow-ups.

RESULTS

This study included 24 patients, comprising nine AORRP and 15 JORRP cases. In AORRP, all patients (100%) exhibited various degrees of response to systemic bev, with 5 (55.56%) achieving complete response (CR). Among JORRP patients, 14 (93.33%) showed a response to systemic bev, with 8 (53.33%) achieving CR and currently being followed up. No instances of aggravation were observed during systemic bev treatment. A total of 21 patients (21/24, 87.50%) reported voice improvement, accompanied by reduced VHI-30 or pVHI scores across all aspects, including total, functional, physical, and emotional dimensions. No grade 3 or higher adverse events occurred. The most common adverse events were grade 1 gum bleeding (n = 4, 16.67%) and grade 1 proteinuria (n = 4, 16.67%).

CONCLUSIONS

Systemic bev can be used as a powerful therapy for both AORRP and JORRP. The findings provide a reference to the systemic bev treatment for RRP.

Pulmonary Involvement in Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis: A Systematic Review

Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) is a non-malignant disease, characterized by the production of wart-like growths in the respiratory tract, affecting both young people and adults (juvenile-onset recurrent respiratory papillomatosis, JORRP, and adult-onset recurrent respiratory papillomatosis, AORRP, respectively). Infection caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) is known as the main factor involved in RRP development. Complications of RRP may rarely occur, including lung involvement and malignant transformation. The present systematic review aimed to evaluate the prevalence of severe complications, such as lung involvement and lung tumor in JORRP and AORRP patients, and assess the role of HPV genotypes in the progression of disease severity following the guideline for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analysis (PRISMA Statement). A total of 378 studies were found on PubMed and Scopus using the following MESH terms: "recurrent respiratory papillomatosis and lung tumor" and "pulmonary tumor and recurrent respiratory papillomatosis". Basing on inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 11 studies were included in the systematic review. We found a pooled prevalence of 8% (95% CI: 4-14%; I2: 87.5%) for lung involvement in RRP patients. In addition, we found a pooled risk difference of 5% in lung involvement between JORRP and AORRP (95% CI: -7-18%; I2: 85.6%, p-value: 0.41). Among patients with lung involvement, we observed a pooled prevalence of lung tumor of 4% (95% CI:1-7%; I2: 67.1%) and a pooled prevalence mortality for this group of 4% (95% CI:2-6%; I2: 0%). Overall, the positivity rate for HPV-6 and -11 in patients with RRP was 91%. Considering only cases with pulmonary involvement, the pooled prevalence for HPV-11 was 21% (95% CI: 5-45%; I2: 77.2%). Our results evidenced a low/middle risk of pulmonary involvement and lung tumor in JORRP and AORRP patients, with an increased risk for HPV-11-positive patients. Further studies should be performed to improve knowledge and adopt preventive measures to contrast the progression to severe diseases in RRP patients.

Transnasal Humidified Rapid Insufflation Ventilatory Exchange Augments Oxygenation in Children With Juvenile Onset Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis During Surgery: A Prospective Randomized Crossover Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

Evidence is lacking regarding the efficacy of transnasal humidified rapid insufflation ventilatory exchange (THRIVE) in tubeless anesthesia, especially in pediatric patients. This study aimed to evaluate the use of THRIVE for juvenile onset recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (JORRP) patients.

METHODS

Twenty-eight children aged 2 to 12 years with JORRP, abnormal airways, and ASA physical status II-III that presented for surgical treatment under general anesthesia were included in this study. Each patient received 2 interventions in random order, with a 5-minute washout period between treatments: apnea without oxygen supplementation and apnea with THRIVE intervention. The primary outcome apnea time was defined as the duration from withdrawal of intubation to reintubation and resumption of controlled ventilation. The secondary outcomes were the mean transcutaneous carbon dioxide (tc co2 ) increase rate, the minimum pulse oxygen saturation (Sp o2 ) during apnea, and the occurrence of unexpected adverse effects.

RESULTS

The median apnea time in the THRIVE period was significantly longer than that in the control period (8.9 [8.6-9.4] vs 3.8 [3.4-4.3] minutes; mean difference [95% confidence interval (CI)], 5.0 [4.4-5.6]; P < .001) for all patients. The rate of CO 2 change in the control period was higher than that in the THRIVE period both for patients aged 2 to 5 years old (6.29 [5.19-7.4] vs 3.22 [2.92-3.76] mm Hg min -1 ; mean difference [95% CI], 3.09 [2.27-3.67]; P < .001) and for patients aged 6 to 12 years old (4.76 [3.7-6.2] vs 3.38 [2.64-4.0] mm Hg min -1 ; mean difference [95% CI], 1.63 [0.75-2.56]; P < .001). The minimum Sp o2 was significantly higher in the THRIVE period than in the control period (mean difference [95% CI], 19.7 [14.8-22.6]; P < .001).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings demonstrate that THRIVE safely increased the apnea time among children with JORRP undergoing surgery and decreased the rate of carbon dioxide increase. THRIVE is clinically recommended as an airway management technique for tubeless anesthesia in apneic children.

Pulmonary manifestations of chronic HPV infection in patients with recurrent respiratory papillomatosis

Human papillomavirus (HPV) types 6 and 11 can infect the squamous epithelium of the respiratory tract. Up to 8·9% of patients with HPV-associated recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) have pulmonary involvement. Pulmonary manifestations of HPV infection are associated with considerable morbidity, in part because treatment options and management guidelines are lacking. Patients with pulmonary RRP have a 32-times increased lifetime risk of malignant transformation compared with the overall RRP population. We review the clinical and radiographic presentation, pathological features, and genetics of pulmonary RRP, and we provide management algorithms based on our clinical experience with this complex patient population. In patients with suspected pulmonary involvement, tissue-sparing procedures to address growing lesions might be warranted given the chronicity and multifocality of the disease over a patient's lifetime. However, malignant transformation of pulmonary lesion(s) warrants standard-of-care treatment for primary lung squamous cell carcinoma. Large cohort studies are needed to understand the clinical course of pulmonary RRP and to identify molecular markers of increased risk of malignant transformation in order to develop guidelines for optimal and standardised surveillance and treatment.

The duration of tracheostomy dependence in patients with juvenile-onset recurrent respiratory papillomatosis

BACKGROUND

Tracheostomy is a vital therapy for juvenile-onset recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (JORRP) to maintain an adequate airway in an emergency, yet the relationship between cannulation duration and prognosis has not been extensively explored.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the predictive influence of the duration of tracheostomy dependence on JORRP remission.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A retrospective review of JORRP patients (n = 77) with tracheostomy treated in Beijing Tongren Hospital was performed.

RESULTS

The rate of decannulation was 72.7%. After decannulation for one year, the percentage of distal spread fell from 42.9 to 30.4%. Twenty-six of 77 patients (33.8%) had remission of their disease, 40 (51.9%) continued to have active disease while 11 (14.3%) died during follow-up. The cannulation duration was positively correlated with the overall duration of this disease (r = 0.6). The cut-off point of 34.9 months for cannulation duration indicated the highest predictive value of remission. Duration of cannulation >34.9 months (OR = 0.33) and distal spread (OR = 0.29) decreased odds of remission.

CONCLUSION

The study demonstrates that the time span before decannulation indicates the severity of disease and cannulation aggravates the distal spread. Patients with cannulation duration ≤ 34.9 months after tracheostomy are prone to possess a relatively pleasant prognosis.