TITLE:
Stenting for the Management of Posttracheostomy Tracheomalacia: Case Report
AUTHORS:
Demirhan Ozkan, Hurkal Tugce, Sener Sibel, Ece Ferah
KEYWORDS:
Tracheostomy; Tracheomalacia; Stent
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Respiratory Diseases,
Vol.3 No.1,
February
22,
2013
ABSTRACT: In patients who undergo prolonged endotracheal intubation,
tracheostomy is performed to prevent the tracheal and laryngeal
trauma which may be caused by the intubation tube. In this report, a patient
who was intubated after a cerebrovascular embolism and required a
tracheostomy for 6 months due to decannulation problems is presented. The patient
subsequently developed a tracheomalacia. A stent was inserted and seen to
provide functional support. Upon removal of the stent, the tracheomalacia
improved. Although surgical therapy is claimed to provide higher success rate,
stenting may also be a viable option for the management of tracheomalacia and
improve the quality of life in patients with good general condition.