Few dental procedures have fatal complications, but severe postoperative hemorrhage can result in preventable death. This report describes a case of postextraction hemorrhage that led to airway compromise necessitating emergency airway management. This complication is rare, and a review of the literature revealed little in the way of case reports and treatment protocols. This article reviews th...

Breast cancer rarely metastasizes to the muscles, and it is even more unusual for this phenomenon to result in airway compromise. We present a unique case of an 84-year-old female who presented with neck swelling and upper airway obstruction due to metastatic breast cancer invading the sternocleidomastoid muscles. After establishing the diagnosis and discussing possible treatment options, the p...

Penetrating foreign bodies of the oropharynx are encountered in children of all ages, although more frequently between the ages of 3 to 5 years. A thorough preanesthetic evaluation of these patients, including type and extent of injury, must be performed if time allows. As a result of the often emergent nature of these cases, poor patient cooperation, and great potential for airway compromise, ...

A 25-year-old Caucasian man had difficulty swallowing and shortness of breath during an episode of infectious mononucleosis. His tonsils were "kissing" and erythematous but no superimposed infection with a streptococcal organism was identified. His symptoms improved rapidly upon administration of intravenous steroids. This case demonstrates a rare and short-term complication that is well descri...

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disorder. It usually results from the structural compromise of the upper airway. In patients with OSA, the obstruction predominantly occurs along the pharyngeal airway, and also a variety of tumors have been reported to cause such a condition. We present here the case of a thyroglossal duct cyst causing OSA in adult. This case demonstrates that thyroglo...

The risk of hemorrhage after therapeutic administration of tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) is well known. Cases of postadministration hemorrhage have been reported within many organ systems. We present a case of a 62-year-old female with undiagnosed thyroid goiter who received tPA for acute ischemic stroke and developed acute airway compromise. The surgical airway response team was called du...

A case of low back pain syndrome was diagnosed due to spinal metastasis with unknown primary origin. During anesthesia for surgical stabilization, unexpected airway obstruction occurred after endotracheal intubation. Fiber-optic bronchoscopic examination showed narrowing of the trachea and main bronchi caused by extrinsic compression. After administration of neostigmine to reverse neuromuscular...