Lateral pharyngeal fat pad compression of the upper airway (UA) wall is thought to influence UA size in patients with obstructive sleep apnea. We examined interactions between acute mass/volume loading of the UA extra-luminal tissue space and UA patency. We studied 12 supine, anesthetized, spontaneously breathing, head position-controlled (50 degrees ), New Zealand White rabbits. Submucosal ext...

A collapsible tube surrounded by soft material within a rigid box was proposed as a two-dimensional mechanical model for the pharyngeal airway. This model predicts that changes in the box size (pharyngeal bony enclosure size anatomically defined as cross-sectional area bounded by the inside edge of bony structures such as the mandible, maxilla, and spine, and being perpendicular to the airway) ...

Correspondence to: Dr R B Fogel, Division of Sleep Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; [email protected] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O bstructive sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (OSAHS) is a common disorder which affects 2–4% of middle aged women and men in the United States. This disorder is characterised by recurrent sleep...

Lung cancer complications are the leading cause of death in lung patients. This study aimed to describe prevalence stent placement, indications for success and complication rates, prognosis airway placement patients with cancer. Malignant central obstruction (MCAO) is one significant complications. Insertion can restore patency more than 90% MCAO. Airway indicated extrinsic lesions, ≥ 50%, have...

High dose rate (HDR) endobronchial brachytherapy is a palliative treatment for symptomatic airway obstruction by malignant tumours. We report a novel use of HDR brachytherapy for treating non-malignant bronchial obstruction. The patient had a metal stent placed in a reconstructed airway after a bronchial tear to ensure patency. Granulation tissue formation in and around the stent caused symptom...

This report concerns the inference of geometric and mechanical airway characteristics based on information derived from a single transient planar wave recorded at the airway opening. We describe a new method to simultaneously measure upper airway area and respiratory input impedance by performing dual analysis of a single pressure wave. The algorithms required to reconstruct airway dimensions a...

If pulmonary surfactant develops a dysfunction, its ability to maintain patency of narrow conducting airways diminishes, which is likely to cause an increased airway resistance. We hypothesized that antigen challenge will cause inflammation in the conducting airways and that this will cause a surfactant dysfunction. Twenty atopic patients underwent bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) 5 min and 48 h af...

IMPORTANCE Airway stenosis occurs in patients with granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA or Wegener granulomatosis). It produces significant morbidity and contributes to mortality. OBJECTIVE To investigate the frequency and distribution of airway stenoses in GPA and evaluate the efficacy of local interventions in maintaining airway patency. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS A retrospective ...

Introduction: Acute epiglottitis or supraglottitis is a rapidly progressing upper respiratory tract infection that can often threaten the airway patency. Epiglottic abscess that expands to the paraglottic (PGS) or preepiglottic (PES) space and acute airway obstruction constitute rare complications, exclusively presented in adults.   Case Report: We report two cases. In t...

Primary tracheal amyloidosis (PTA) can lead to airway obstructions, and patients with severe PTA should undergo bronchoscopic interventions in order to maintain airway patency. Focal airway involvements with amyloidosis can only be treated with mechanical dilatation. However, the PTA with diffused airway involvements and concomitant cartilage destructions requires stent placement. Limited infor...