Sachin Gandhi ¹ and Shradha Saindani ² *

¹ Consultant at Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Pune, India
² Junior Consultant at Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Pune, India

*Corresponding Author: Shradha Saindani, Junior Consultant at Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Pune, India.

Received: January 07, 2026; Published: January 31, 2026

Abstract

Tapia syndrome is a rare combination of Vagus (X) and Hypoglosssal (XII) nerve palsy. It is a complication of prolonged intubation or airway manipulation of patients under general anesthesia with muscle relaxants. Incidence of this syndrome was observed to be increased in COVID-19 patients due to prone positioning and extended ventilation.

Objective: To analyze 40 cases of Tapia syndrome in COVID-19 patients, focusing on clinical features, risk factors and outcomes

Methods: A retrospective review of 40 intubated COVID-19 patients diagnosed with Tapia syndrome was done. Data on symptoms, intubation duration, management, and recovery were analyzed.

Results: Patients presented with dysphonia, dysarthria and tongue deviation post-extubation. Mean intubation duration was 2 weeks. Treatment included corticosteroids, swallowing therapy and speech therapy. Those who did not recover with conservative management, surgical intervention with Autologous Fat Injection Laryngoplasty (AFI) was done. Overall 75.3% of patients recovered completely over a period of 6 months to 1 year.

Conclusion: Tapia syndrome is a notable complication in COVID-19 patients. Early diagnosis and supportive care improve outcomes. Also one should keep in mind that prolonged intubation in a prone position, change in head position with airway manipulation, throat packs, instrumentation in airway with head flexed are risk factors for development of this syndrome

Keywords: Tapia Syndrome; COVID-19; Unilateral Vocal Cord Paralysis (UVCP)

References

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Citation

Citation: Sachin Gandhi and Shradha Saindani. “Tapia Syndrome: Clinical Presentation, Diagnosis and Management of 40 Patients During Covid-19 Pandemic". Acta Scientific Otolaryngology 8.2 (2026): 19-22.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2026 Sachin Gandhi and Shradha Saindani. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.