Our 12 year experience with Montgomery T-tube in the management of acute blunt laryngotracheal trauma patients / Nossa experiência de 12 anos com o tubo T de Montgomery no tratamento de pacientes com trauma laringotraqueal contuso agudo

Abstract Introduction The Montgomery T-tube is a device used as a combined tracheal stent and tracheostomy tube to prevent post-operative tracheal stenosis. Objectives The purpose of this retrospective study is to evaluate the outcome following Montgomery T-tube stenting performed in for neck and airway injury in patients with acute blunt laryngotracheal trauma over a period of 12 years. Methods Between 2005 and 2017, 19 patients with acute blunt laryngotracheal trauma underwent Montgomery T-tube stenting. All 19 laryngotracheal trauma patients had undergone a preoperative tracheostomy in the emergency department by an ENT surgeon. Montgomery T-tube stenting was done later through an external approach. The follow up period ranged from 2 to 10 years. The Montgomery T-tube was removed after a period ranging from 6 months to 1½ year. Results The majority of patients in the study were in the age group of 21-30 years. A preoperative tracheostomy was done in all 19 patients. All patients except 3 underwent successful decannulation, and experienced long-term satisfactory result. Conclusion Management of acute blunt laryngotracheal trauma is a challenging problem that demands a multidisciplinary approach. The ideal treatment option should be individualized according to the patient's condition and characteristics of injury. According to our study we suggest that cases of acute blunt laryngotracheal trauma patients should be managed following the protocol as mentioned in our study, and we strongly emphasize that Montgomery T-tube should be left for at least 1 complete year in the airway as it results in negligible chances of post-traumatic stenosis of airway later.

Resumo Introdução O tubo T de Montgomery é um dispositivo usado como stent traqueal combinado com tubo de traqueostomia para evitar estenose traqueal pós-operatória. Objetivo Avaliar o resultado do procedimento cirúrgico feito para lesões no pescoço e nas vias aéreas em pacientes com trauma laringotraqueal contuso agudo e o resultado da colocação do tubo T de Montgomery nesses pacientes por 12 anos. Método Entre 2005 e 2017, 19 pacientes com trauma laringotraqueal contuso agudo foram submetidos ao implante do tubo T de Montgomery. Todos os 19 pacientes com trauma laringotraqueal foram submetidos a uma traqueostomia pré-operatória no pronto-socorro por um cirurgião otorrinolaringologista. O implante do tubo T de Montgomery foi feito posteriormente através de uma abordagem externa. O período de seguimento variou de dois a 10 anos. O tubo T de Montgomery foi removido após um período que variou de seis meses a um ano e meio. Resultados A maioria dos pacientes do estudo estava na faixa de 21 a 30 anos. A traqueostomia pré-operatória foi feita em todos os 19 pacientes. Todos, exceto três, tiveram decanulação bem-sucedida e resultado satisfatório em longo prazo. Conclusão O tratamento do trauma laringotraqueal contuso agudo é um desafio que exige uma abordagem multidisciplinar. A opção de tratamento ideal deve ser individualizada de acordo com a condição do paciente e as características da lesão. De acordo com nosso estudo, sugerimos que os casos de pacientes com trauma laringotraqueal contuso agudo sejam tratados de acordo com o protocolo mencionado em nosso estudo e enfatizamos fortemente que o implante do tubo T de Montgomery deve ser mantido por pelo menos um ano completo nas vias aéreas, pois resulta em chances insignificantes de posterior estenose pós-traumática das vias aéreas.

Vigilance in detecting traumatic blunt neck injuries: A case report

There has been an increase in the number of Motor Vehicle Accidents (MVA) in Malaysia throughout the years. Although blunt neck injury is uncommon, it is associated with severe, permanent neurological deficit with risk of mortality. This case is a classical presentation of a young male involved in a MVA who sustained head and neck injuries of varying severity. After a short symptom free interval, the patient started to develop neurological signs. Presenting signs and symptoms include Horner’s syndrome, dysphasia, hemiparesis, obtundation or monoparesis. A computed tomography (CT) scan of brain must be done and if the findings showed that there is no intracranial bleeding (ICB), high suspicions with further evaluation should be done. Confirmation can be obtained by Doppler ultrasonography, magnetic resonance imaging, magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), CT angiography (CTA) or catheter angiography to rule out carotid artery injury.