Upper airway obstruction in the critically ill

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edmond Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Airway Obstruction ◽  
Pulmonary Function Tests ◽  
Upper Airway ◽  
Sleep Apnoea ◽  
Upper Airway Obstruction ◽  
Breath Sounds ◽  
Obstructive Sleep ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Facial Swelling ◽  
Conscious Patient

Upper airway obstruction (UAO) from any cause should be considered a life-threatening emergency. In a conscious patient, UAO may present as respiratory distress, stridor, dyspnoea, altered voice, cyanosis, cough, decreased or absent breath sounds, wheezing, the hand-to-the-throat choking sign in the case of a foreign body, facial swelling, and distended neck veins. The cause of UAO should be identified and airway management devices must be immediately available prior to any airway manipulation CT scan, flexible bronchoscopy, and pulmonary function tests should be performed to evaluate the cause and the extent of the obstruction. Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) patients are at increased risk of developing UAO. Endotracheal intubation, insertion of a supraglottic device, laser therapy, and endotracheal stents maybe life-saving

Utility of sleep nasendoscopy versus microlaryngotracheobronchoscopy in the diagnosis of paediatric upper airway obstruction

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-3
Author(s):  
G Khong ◽  
S Sood ◽  
H Jones ◽  
S Sharma ◽  
S De
Keyword(s):  
Airway Obstruction ◽  
Surgical Intervention ◽  
Upper Airway ◽  
Sleep Apnoea ◽  
Upper Airway Obstruction ◽  
Paediatric Hospital ◽  
Obstructive Sleep ◽  
Hospital Patients ◽  
Physiological Sleep ◽  
Sleep Nasendoscopy

Abstract Objective To describe the utility of sleep nasendoscopy in determining the level of upper airway obstruction compared to microlaryngotracheobronchoscopy. Methods A retrospective observational study was conducted at a tertiary level paediatric hospital. Patients clinically diagnosed with upper airway obstruction warranting surgical intervention (i.e. with obstructive sleep apnoea or laryngomalacia) were included. These patients underwent sleep nasendoscopy in the anaesthetic room; microlaryngotracheobronchoscopy was subsequently performed and findings were compared. Results Twenty-seven patients were included in the study. Sleep nasendoscopy was able to induce stridor or stertor, and to detect obstruction at the level of palate and pharynx, including tongue base collapse, that was not observed with microlaryngotracheobronchoscopy. Only 47 per cent of patients who had prolapse or indrawing of arytenoids on sleep nasendoscopy had similar findings on microlaryngotracheobronchoscopy. However, microlaryngotracheobronchoscopy was better in diagnosing shortened aryepiglottic folds. Conclusion This study demonstrates the utility of sleep nasendoscopy in determining the level and severity of obstruction by mimicking physiological sleep dynamics of the upper airway.

scholarly journals Compensatory responses to upper airway obstruction in obese apneic men and women

2012 ◽  
Vol 112 (3) ◽  
pp. 403-410 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chien-Hung Chin ◽  
Jason P. Kirkness ◽  
Susheel P. Patil ◽  
Brian M. McGinley ◽  
Philip L. Smith ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sleep Apnea ◽  
Airway Obstruction ◽  
Rem Sleep ◽  
Minute Ventilation ◽  
Upper Airway ◽  
Nrem Sleep ◽  
Upper Airway Obstruction ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Compensatory Responses ◽  
Obstructive Sleep

Defective structural and neural upper airway properties both play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of obstructive sleep apnea. A more favorable structural upper airway property [pharyngeal critical pressure under hypotonic conditions (passive Pcrit)] has been documented for women. However, the role of sex-related modulation in compensatory responses to upper airway obstruction (UAO), independent of the passive Pcrit, remains unclear. Obese apneic men and women underwent a standard polysomnography and physiological sleep studies to determine sleep apnea severity, passive Pcrit, and compensatory airflow and respiratory timing responses to prolonged periods of UAO. Sixty-two apneic men and women, pairwise matched by passive Pcrit, exhibited similar sleep apnea disease severity during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, but women had markedly less severe disease during non-REM (NREM) sleep. By further matching men and women by body mass index and age ( n = 24), we found that the lower NREM disease susceptibility in women was associated with an approximately twofold increase in peak inspiratory airflow ( P = 0.003) and inspiratory duty cycle ( P = 0.017) in response to prolonged periods of UAO and an ∼20% lower minute ventilation during baseline unobstructed breathing (ventilatory demand) ( P = 0.027). Thus, during UAO, women compared with men had greater upper airway and respiratory timing responses and a lower ventilatory demand that may account for sex differences in sleep-disordered breathing severity during NREM sleep, independent of upper airway structural properties and sleep apnea severity during REM sleep.

scholarly journals 1244 A Curious Case of ASV Failure

SLEEP ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 43 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. A474-A474
Author(s):  
Nishant Chaudhary ◽  
Mirna Ayache ◽  
John Carter
Keyword(s):  
Sleep Apnea ◽  
Airway Obstruction ◽  
Airway Pressure ◽  
Positive Airway Pressure ◽  
Central Sleep Apnea ◽  
Upper Airway ◽  
Upper Airway Obstruction ◽  
Neck Extension ◽  
Sleep Study ◽  
Obstructive Sleep

Abstract Introduction Positive airway pressure-induced upper airway obstruction has been reported with the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) using continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) along with an oronasal interface. Here we describe a case of persistent treatment emergent central sleep apnea (TECSA) inadequately treated with adaptive servo ventilation (ASV), with an airflow pattern suggestive of ASV-induced upper airway obstruction. Report of Case A 32-year-old male, with severe OSA (apnea hypopnea index: 52.4) and no other significant past medical history, was treated with CPAP and required higher pressures during titration sleep studies to alleviate obstructive events, despite a Mallampati Class II airway and a normal body mass index. Drug-Induced Sleep Endoscopy (DISE) showed a complete velopharynx and oropharynx anterior posterior (AP) collapse, long soft palate, which improved with neck extension. CPAP therapy, however, did not result in any symptomatic benefit and compliance reports revealed high residual AHI and persistent TECSA. He underwent an ASV titration sleep study up to a final setting of expiratory positive airway pressure 9 cm H2O, pressure support 6-15 cm H2O (auto-rate), with a full-face mask due to high oral leak associated with the nasal interface. The ASV device detected central apneas and provided mandatory breaths, but did not capture the thorax or abdomen, despite normal mask pressure tracings. Several such apneas occurred, with significant oxyhemoglobin desaturation. Conclusion We postulate that the ASV failure to correct central sleep apnea as evidenced by the absence of thoracoabdominal inspiratory effort, occurred due to ASV-induced upper airway obstruction. Further treatment options for this ASV phenomenon are to pursue an ASV-assisted DISE and determine the effectiveness of adjunctive therapy including neck extension, nasal mask with a mouth closing device and a mandibular assist device.

scholarly journals Concurrent Negative-Pressure Pulmonary Edema (NPPE) and Takotsubo Syndrome (TTS) after Upper Airway Obstruction

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Evan Harmon ◽  
Sebastian Estrada ◽  
Ryan J. Koene ◽  
Sula Mazimba ◽  
Younghoon Kwon
Keyword(s):  
Airway Obstruction ◽  
Pulmonary Edema ◽  
Negative Pressure ◽  
Upper Airway ◽  
Upper Airway Obstruction ◽  
Takotsubo Syndrome ◽  
Negative Pressure Pulmonary Edema ◽  
Acute Airway Obstruction ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Life Threatening

Upper airway obstruction is a potentially life-threatening emergency often encountered in the acute care, perioperative, and critical care settings. One important complication of acute obstruction is negative-pressure pulmonary edema (NPPE). We describe two cases of acute upper airway obstruction, both of which resulted in flash pulmonary edema complicated by acute hypoxic respiratory failure. Though NPPE was suspected, these patients were also found to have Takotsubo syndrome (TTS). Neither patient had prior cardiac disease, and both subsequently had a negative ischemic workup. Because TTS is a condition triggered by hyperadrenergic states, the acute airway obstruction alone or in combination with NPPE was the likely explanation for TTS in each case. These cases highlight the importance of also considering cardiogenic causes of pulmonary edema in the setting of upper airway obstruction, which we suspect generates a profound catecholamine surge and places patients at increased risk of TTS development.

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