Difficulties in the treatment of recurrent juvenile laryngeal papillomatosis associated with pemphigus vulgaris

Recurrent laryngeal papillomatosis is a disease caused by human papillomaviruses (HPVs), which currently does not benefit from a curative treatment. Due to the fact that HPV has the action of modifying cellular DNA, with changes in the expression of interleukins and interferon, with insufficient maturation of T cells and intracellular overpopulation of immunosuppressive cells, the association of RRP (Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis) with an autoimmune disease may cause particular difficulties in the therapeutic management of patients diagnosed with RRP.

Immunosuppressive medication negatively influences the development of papillomatosis, increasing the number of local relapses and, respectively, the need for surgical intervention due to the increased viral multiplication and the proliferation of papillomatous lesions. In order to exemplify the difficulties encountered in treating RRP associated with an autoimmune disorder, the authors present the case of a 21-year-old patient diagnosed with juvenile recurrent laryngeal papillomatosis genotype 6, with multiple antecedent surgeries, who was diagnosed with pemphigus vulgaris at the age of 19. The peculiarity of the case lies in the difficulty of managing the RRP associated with an immunosuppressive disorder whose therapeutic indication is cortisone and immunosuppressive treatment, which led to exacerbation of viral multiplication and proliferation of papillomatous lesions.