The transition from a liquid to a gas filled tubular network is the prerequisite for normal function of vertebrate lungs and invertebrate tracheal systems. However, the mechanisms underlying the process of gas filling remain obscure. Here we show that waterproof, encoding a fatty acyl-CoA reductase (FAR), is essential for the gas filling of the tracheal tubes during Drosophila embryogenesis, an...

Cells at the tips of budding branches in the Drosophila tracheal system generate two morphologically different types of seamless tubes. Terminal cells (TCs) form branched lumenized extensions that mediate gas exchange at target tissues, whereas fusion cells (FCs) form ring-like connections between adjacent tracheal metameres. Each tracheal branch contains a specific set of TCs, FCs, or both, bu...

A 60-year-old woman was prepared for revision of a previous anterior lumbar interbody fusion. After induction of anesthesia, three attempts to pass decreasing sizes of endotracheal tubes remained unsuccessful. An LMA Fastrach was inserted to maintain ventilation. Upon examination of the trachea with a flexible fiberoptic bronchoscope via the LMA Fastrach, a tracheal web was visualized 1 cm belo...

Introduction: Laryngeal mask airway (LMA) Fastrach was specially designed as a conduit for blind tracheal intubation in anticipated difficult airway and where we do not require neck extension. i-gel is a disposable, cheap supraglottic device with wide bore stem which facilitates direct passage of a conventional polyvinylchloride (PVC) endotracheal tube. Materials and Methods: A total of 80 adul...

Radiation to the head and neck is commonly used in the treatment of cancers. A side effect in some patients is the development of pharyngeal and or esophageal strictures. Hypopharyngeal strictures can resemble edematous larynges. If mistakenly so identified, tracheal tubes placed through these structures are unlikely to result in tracheal intubation and more likely to cause obstruction, esophag...

Insects are known to exchange respiratory gases in their system of tracheal tubes by using either diffusion or changes in internal pressure that are produced through body motion or hemolymph circulation. However, the inability to see inside living insects has limited our understanding of their respiration mechanisms. We used a synchrotron beam to obtain x-ray videos of living, breathing insects...

Tracheotomy is often successfully used to manage tracheal stenosis, as a temporizing measure prior to definitive treatment or a long-term remedy. In some patients, where a sizeable portion trachea is stenotic, the fixed arm of an ordinary tracheotomy tube may not be of sufficient length to satisfactorily maintain the distal tracheal lumen, and commercially available adjustable tubes may not be ...

Tracheal rupture is a rare complication of endotracheal intubation. Risk factors include short neck, repeated attempts due to failed intubation, inappropriate stylus, over-inflation of the cuff, poor positioning of the tube, inappropriate tube size, weakened membrane structure due to steroid use, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, tracheomalacia, kyphosis, and use of nitric oxide during the...

Epithelial tubes in developing organs, such as mammalian lungs and insect tracheae, need to expand their initially narrow lumina to attain their final, functional dimensions. Despite its critical role for organ function, the cellular mechanism of tube expansion remains unclear. Tracheal tube expansion in Drosophila involves apical secretion and deposition of a luminal matrix, but the mechanisti...