Biodegradable airway stents in infants - Potential life-threatening pitfalls.

OBJECTIVE: The solution of severe tracheobronchial obstructions in early childhood means a great challenge. Biodegradable stents were intended to be a minimally invasive temporary solution which may decrease the number of interventions and limit the possible complications of stenting procedures. However, our first experiences have brought out a new, - especially in childhood - potentially life-threatening complication of this concept. METHODS: Five SX-ELLA biodegradable polydioxanone stents was applied in three patients because of severe tracheobronchial obstruction: congenital tracheomalacia (7 day-old), acquired tracheomalacia (10 month-old), and congenital trachea-bronchomalacia (10 month-old). RESULTS: The breathing of all children improved right after the procedure. We observed degradation of the stent from the 5th postoperative week which resulted in large intraluminar fragments causing significant airway obstruction: one patient died of severe pneumonia, the other baby required urgent bronchoscopy to remove the obstructing 'foreign body' from the trachea. In the third case repeated stent placements successfully maintained the tracheal lumen. CONCLUSIONS: Polydioxanone stents may offer an alternative to metallic or silastic stents for collapse or external compression of the trachea in children; however, large decaying fragments mean a potential risk especially in the small size pediatric airway. The fragmentation of the stent, which generally starts in the 4-6 postoperative weeks, may create large sharp pieces. These may be anchored to the mucosa and covered by crust leading to obstruction. As repeated interventions are required, we do not consider the application of biodegradable stents unambiguously advantageous.

[Results at the Rabta Tunis Maternity and Neonatology Center of the surgical treatment of genital prolapse. 193 cases in 7 years (1982-1988)]. / L'expérience du Centre de Maternité et de Néonatologie de la Rabta Tunis dans le traitement chirurgical des prolapsus génitaux. A propos de 193 cas en 7 ans (1982-1988).

The authors report their experience in the treatment of 193 cases of genital prolapse treated surgically in the Rabta Tunis Maternity and Neonatology Unit during a 7 year period between January 1st 1982 and December 31st 1988. The epidemiological characteristics of the study population were dominated by the following factors: advanced age (mean age 54); multiparity (80 per cent of cases); 65.8 per cent of women were post-menopausal. The commonest association of lesions was triple prolapse, present in 78 per cent of cases. Stress incontinence of urine (SIU) was a common feature (59 per cent of cases). Treatment preference was for vaginal hysterectomy combined with anterior colporrhaphy and posterior perineorrhaphy (73.5 per cent). The Kelly Marion operation was often used for SIU (89 per cent of cases) and gave satisfactory results in 73 per cent of cases.