Background ! Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may occur as a result of anatomical or functional obstruction at different levels of the upper and lower airway. Functional obstruction happens mostly during REM (rapid-eye movement) and nonREM 1 (N2) sleep stages. ! PSG (polysomnography) provides the data of sleep O2 saturations, hypopneic and apneic events and abnormal respiratory events per hour, ho...

Laryngotracheal stenosis develops when scar tissue forms in the trachea and, rarely, in the larynx itself. Symptoms depend on the degree of airway obstruction and can range from asymptomatic to upper airway obstruction severe enough to cause death. We report on 21 patients who underwent tracheal resection for severe stenosis. Resection remains a good option in this situation, and there is a min...

Laryngocele is an abnormal dilatation of Morgagni ventricle (saccule) in direct communication with the laryngeal lumen. Symptoms are not characteristic: hoarseness, dyspnea, foreign body sensation and cough. Sometimes it is presented as cervical swelling causing airway obstruction and need an emergency tracheotomy. In this paper, we report a case of upper airway obstruction due to laryngocele a...

A 63 year old woman presented with a 3 year history of exertional dyspnoea. Spirometry suggested extrathoracic airway obstruction (decreased inspiratory flow and saw-tooth pattern of flow-volume curves), and bronchoscopy revealed structural lesions and a trembling motion in the arytenoid region, causing upper airway obstruction on forced respiratory efforts. As there were no abnormal findings o...

The Pierre Robin sequence was first described by Pierre Robin in 1923 as a triad of micrognathia, U-shaped cleft palate, and glossoptosis. Although the problems associated with Pierre Robin sequence may be numerous, the most acute problem in affected newborns is upper airway obstruction. The causes of upper airway obstruction are heterogeneous, and treatment is controversial and may include a l...

Adenotonsillectomy in children may be performed safely on an outpatient basis in the majority of cases without an increase in complication rates. However, very young children comprise a unique patient subpopulation with regard to adenotonsillar surgery. Surgical indications in older children tend to be dominated by chronic recurrent infections, whereas younger children usually require surgery f...

Congenital high airway obstruction (CHAOS) is a rare lethal fetal malformation characterised by obstruction to the fetal upper airway, which can be partial or complete. Antenatal diagnosis of CHAOS is important due to recent management options. Diagnosis is made with secondary changes such as hyperechoic enlarged lungs resulting in mediastinal compression, ascites, hydrops, flattened or everted...

ABSTRACT Acute upper airway obstruction (UAO) is a life threatening complication that is well recognized after carotid endarterectomy, thyroidectomy and pharyngeal area intervention. It is not widely acknowledged that airway obstruction can occur after cervical spinal fusion surgery which was first described in 1955. There are a number of common postoperative problems which may become apparent ...

Obstructive fibrinous tracheal pseudomembrane (OFTP) is an airway complication that occurs after endotracheal intubation. It originates from superficial mucosal abrasion and desquamation of necrotic tracheal epithelium at the site of cuff pressure. This condition is a rare cause of postextubation stridor. We present a case of postextubation stridor secondary to OFTP, resulting in clinical featu...