Prolonged nasotracheal intubation in recurrent papillary thyroid carcinoma

Endotracheal intubation is usually the preferred technique of securing a compromised airway. In prolonged intubation, a tracheostomy is usually created to avoid complications of prolonged ventilation. However, the condition of the patient or the disease itself sometimes does not permit this conversion. Therefore keeping the tube in situ for prolonged durations may be needed. We report the case of a 62-year-old Malay man with recurrent papillary carcinoma of thyroid involving the trachea that was managed with the use of nasotracheal intubation for stenting the airway.