{"pk":53121,"title":"Sorely Mistaken—Soft Palatal Myxedema in Decompensated Hypothyroidism Presenting as a Sore Throat: Case Report","subtitle":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction</strong>: Oropharyngeal myxedema is a rare presenting symptom of decompensated hypothyroidism that can mimic more common causes of sore throat.</p>\n<p><strong>Case Report: </strong>We describe a case of an older woman who presented with throat pain and dysphagia, found to have soft palate edema on exam and imaging. Laboratory testing confirmed severe hypothyroidism, and her symptoms eventually resolved with thyroid hormone replacement therapy.</p>\n<p><strong>Conclusion</strong>: This case highlights a rare and under-recognized presentation of a common endocrine disorder. Consider myxedema from severe hypothyroidism in patients with subacute oropharyngeal pain and swelling. Without early recognition and treatment, the patient is at risk for two life-threatening conditions: airway compromise from soft palate myxedema and progression of hypothyroidism to myxedema coma.</p>","language":"eng","license":{"name":"Creative Commons Attribution 4.0","short_name":"CC BY 4.0","text":"Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.\r\n\r\nNo additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},"keywords":[{"word":"airway"},{"word":"endocrinology"},{"word":"myxedema"},{"word":"thyroid."},{"word":"case report"}],"section":"Case Reports","is_remote":true,"remote_url":"https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4v42s2gq","frozenauthors":[{"first_name":"Gabriella","middle_name":"","last_name":"Miller","name_suffix":"","institution":"University of Maryland School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland","department":""},{"first_name":"Bennett","middle_name":"A","last_name":"Myers","name_suffix":"","institution":"University of Maryland School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland","department":""}],"date_submitted":"2025-10-11T20:19:03.252000+05:30","date_accepted":"2026-01-19T21:54:03.205000+05:30","date_published":"2026-04-30T03:41:00+05:30","render_galley":null,"galleys":[{"label":"PDF","type":"pdf","path":"https://journalpub.escholarship.org/uciem_cpcem/article/53121/galley/49566/download/"}]}