Management of the airway in Apert syndrome is complex and multidisciplinary. This rare syndrome, occurring in up to approximately 1 in 65,000 live births, results in airway compromise at various anatomic levels, in addition to abnormal central respiratory drive. Obstructive apneas arise because of decreased airway caliber, which may occur in the form of congenital bony nasal stenosis, choanal a...

Forty eight patients with a clinical diagnosis of diphtheria, admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of a tertiary care teaching hospital, from December 1994 to 2002, were analyzed retrospectively with respect to demographic details, clinical features, immunization status, complications and mortality. Several variables were compared among the survivors and non-survivors to define ...

Primary laryngeal amyloidosis is a rare benign disease of unknown aetiology. It can present with dysphonia or stridor. A woman presenting with airway compromise, who required a tracheostomy, is reported.

H ereditary angioedema (HAE) is a serious genetic abnormality involving the complement system and characterized by episodic and sometimes life-threatening airway edema. In 1882, von Quincke (1) published the first detailed description, and 3 yr later, Strubing used the term angioedema to describe this disorder. By 1888, Osler (2) had demonstrated the hereditary nature of the clinical presentati...

Primary laryngeal amyloidosis is a rare benign disease of unknown aetiology. It can present with dysphonia or stridor. A woman presenting with airway compromise, who required a tracheostomy, is reported. (Postgrad Med J 2000;76:364–365)

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) results from a structural compromise of the upper airway combined with decrease in muscle tone during sleep. Overt upper airway pathology is rare, however a variety of pharyngeal tumors have been well described as a cause of OSA. We describe a case of a mass originating in the carotid body resulting in severe OSA with hypersomnia resistant to positive pressure vent...

Facial trauma is a commonly encountered presentation to emergency departments. When associated airway compromise occurs, co-existing head and neck injuries serve to produce a challenging clinical situation. We describe two patients who suffered multi-system trauma, with severe maxillofacial injuries that necessitated prompt definitive airway management and mid-face stabilisation in the pre-hosp...