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Case Reports
. 2022 Aug;75(4):350-353.
doi: 10.4097/kja.21460. Epub 2022 Feb 22.

Obstructive fibrinous pseudomembrane tracheitis after double-lumen tube intubation -a case report

Jia-Hui Chua  1 , Brenda Ling Hui Sim  2 , Tina Koh Puay Theng  3 , Sophia Chew  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Obstructive fibrinous pseudomembrane tracheitis after double-lumen tube intubation -a case report

Jia-Hui Chua et al. Korean J Anesthesiol. 2022 Aug.

Abstract

Background: Obstructive fibrinous pseudomembrane tracheitis (OFPT) is a rare complication of endotracheal intubation.

Case: We describe the case of a 73-year-old woman who underwent short-term intubation for video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery and developed an acute life-threatening stridor two days after extubation. The patient required an emergency tracheostomy to maintain airway patency and a microscopic direct laryngoscopy procedure was performed thereafter with removal of the obstructive pseudomembrane. Subsequently, the patient also suffered a non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction. The patient successfully recovered, and the tracheostomy was subsequently decannulated two months later. Histological examination revealed mucosal ulcerations and inflammatory changes.

Conclusions: OFPT is an uncommon cause of life-threatening airway obstruction after extubation that is not often recognized immediately but can usually be treated with early bronchoscopic intervention or microscopic direct laryngoscopy.

Keywords: Airway management; Airway obstruction; Respiratory insufficiency; Respiratory tract diseases; Tracheal stenosis; Tracheitis.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest

No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Thick rubbery whitish pseudomembrane at the anterior and posterior region, in the subglottic area, just inferior to the level of the true vocal cords.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Near-complete upper airway obstruction requiring emergency tracheostomy.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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