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Laryngeal damage due to an unexpectedly large and inappropriately designed cuffed pediatric tracheal tube in a 13-month-old child

[Lésion laryngée causée par un tube trachéal pédiatrique à ballonnet, mal conçu et trop grand, utilisé chez un enfant de 13 mois]

Claudia M. Dillier, MD^*, Daniel Trachsel, MD, Werner Baulig, MD, Claudine Gysin, MD, Andreas C. Gerber, MD^* and Markus Weiss, MD^*

^* From the Departments of Anesthesia,
Intensive Care and Neonatology,
and Otorhinolaryngology, University Children’s Hospital;
and the Institute of Anesthesiology, University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland.

Address correspondence to: Dr. Markus Weiss, Department of Anesthesia, University Children’s Hospital, Steinwiesstrasse 75, CH-8032 Zurich. Phone: +41 1 266 71 11; Fax: +41 1 266 79 94 ; E-mail: markus.weiss{at}kispi.unizh.ch

Purpose: To present a case of laryngeal damage in an infant caused by a too large and inappropriately designed cuffed tracheal tube.

Clinical features: A 13-month-old child undergoing cardiac surgery was intubated with an uncuffed endotracheal tube with an internal diameter (ID) of 4.0 mm. Because of an important air leak around the tracheal tube during mechanical ventilation, a cuffed endotracheal tube ID 4.0 mm was inserted. The air leak with the tube cuff not inflated was acceptable at 25 cm H₂O airway pressure. After extubation on the third postoperative day, the patient showed increasing stridor and respiratory deterioration. Fibreoptic laryngoscopy of the spontaneously breathing patient showed a large intra-laryngeal web. After surgical removal of the web, the child rapidly recovered and was discharged from the hospital on the 12th postoperative day.

Inspection of the 4.0 mm (ID) cuffed tracheal tube revealed a cuff positioned inappropriately high and an increase of 0.7 mm in outer tube diameter compared to the 4.0 mm (ID) uncuffed tracheal tube from the same manufacturer. The tube cuff is likely to be situated within the larynx when placed in accordance to insertion depth formulas or radiological criteria, as used for uncuffed tracheal tubes in children.

Conclusion: The larger than expected tracheal tube with its intra-laryngeal cuff position in a 13-month-old child likely caused mucosal damage and an inflammatory reaction within the larynx resulting in granulation tissue formation and fibrous healing around the tracheal tube.

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