The pathophysiology of obstructive sleep apnea can be explained by collapse of upper airways secondary to the negative intra-pharyngeal pressure that develops during inspiration [4]. In addition, during sleep, muscles in the mouth relax and tongue and other structures tend to fall toward the back of the mouth causing crowding in the upper airway region with more potential for upper airway obstr...

The respiratory tract opens to the external environment at the oral side edge, and the other edge of the respiratory tract connects to the closed space (alveoli), and so to preserve the sterility in the terminal respiratory tract is critical for protection against pathogens. The recognition machinery for the invasion of microbes is indispensable for the preservation of the sterility in the lung...

A 47-year-old man was referred to the operating room to treat a dentigenous cyst of the mandibular bone. Initial assessment of the airway was considered normal. However, after the induction of anesthesia, we could not intubate the patient due to severe distortion of the glottis. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy and video laryngoscopy were not effective. Intubation using a retrograde wire technique was s...

BACKGROUND The surgical excision of anatomic obstructions such as adenoids, palatine or lingual tonsils are commonly performed in children with sleep disordered breathing (SDB). Imaging studies measuring airway changes post-surgery in the SDB pediatric population are scarce, rarely addresses the nasal cavity, and are based on global measures (e.g. volume) that do not represent the complexity of...

This paper proposes a method to extract the airway tree from CT images by continually extending the tree with locally optimal paths. This is in contrast to commonly used region growing based approaches that only search the space of the immediate neighbors. The result is a much more robust method for tree extraction that can overcome local occlusions. The cost function for obtaining the optimal ...

macintosh direct laryngoscope has been the most widely used device for tracheal intubation. glidescope video laryngoscope (gvl) has been recently introduced as an alternative device for performing intubation; however, its validity in emergency settings has not been thoroughly evaluated. the aim of this study was to compare macintosh direct laryngoscope versus gvl for emergency endotracheal intu...

introduction: laryngotracheal stenosis can be caused after traumatic injuries to the neck from the subglottic larynx to the trachea. patients with laryngotracheal stenosis often need a tracheotomy and occasionally may become tracheotomy dependent. different procedures have been described for the management of these lesions. management options include techniques of endoscopic dilation, laser res...

a twenty-year-old girl was referred with tracheal stenosis (ts) which was a consequence of prolonged intubation after head injury because of previous car accident. the patient was aphasic and had normal respiration. fiberoptic bronchoscopy showed complete tracheal obstruction at second tracheal ring level. distal trachea was normal through tracheostomy tube. removal of the tracheostomy tube and...