LAUSR.org creates dashboard-style pages of related content for over 1.5 million academic articles. Sign Up to like articles & get recommendations!

Posterior tracheopexy for severe tracheomalacia.

Photo by alexharvey from unsplash

PURPOSE In severe tracheomalacia, aortopexy addresses anterior vascular compression, but does not directly address posterior membranous tracheal intrusion. We review patient outcomes of posterior tracheopexy for tracheomalacia with posterior intrusion… Click to show full abstract

PURPOSE In severe tracheomalacia, aortopexy addresses anterior vascular compression, but does not directly address posterior membranous tracheal intrusion. We review patient outcomes of posterior tracheopexy for tracheomalacia with posterior intrusion to determine if there were resolution of clinical symptoms and bronchoscopic evidence of improvement in airway collapse. METHODS All patients who underwent posterior tracheopexy from October 2012 to March 2016 were retrospectively reviewed. Clinical symptoms, tracheomalacia scores based on standardized dynamic airway evaluation by anatomical region, and persistent airway intrusion were collected. Data were analyzed by Wald and Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests. RESULTS 98 patients (51% male) underwent posterior tracheopexy at a median age of 15months (IQR 6-33months). Median follow-up was 5months (range 0.25-36months). There were statistically significant improvements in clinical symptoms postoperatively, including cough, noisy breathing, prolonged and recurrent respiratory infections, transient respiratory distress requiring positive pressure, oxygen dependence, blue spells, and apparent life-threatening events (p<0.001), as well as ventilator dependence (p=0.04). Tracheomalacia scores on bronchoscopy improved significantly in all regions of the trachea and bronchi (p<0.001). 9.2% had persistent airway intrusion requiring reoperation, usually with aortopexy. CONCLUSIONS Posterior tracheopexy is effective in treating severe tracheomalacia with significant improvements in clinical symptoms and degree of airway collapse on bronchoscopy. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Level III, treatment study.

Keywords: posterior tracheopexy; severe tracheomalacia; intrusion; clinical symptoms; tracheomalacia

Journal Title: Journal of pediatric surgery
Year Published: 2017

Link to full text (if available)


Share on Social Media:                               Sign Up to like & get
recommendations!

Related content

More Information              News              Social Media              Video              Recommended



                Click one of the above tabs to view related content.