Acquired tracheal dilatation after prolonged ventilation: an unusual treatment option

37-Year-Old Tracheostomized Woman With Overdistended Tracheostomy Cuff and Difficulty Ventilating

CASE PRESENTATION

A 37-year-old woman with a medical history of myasthenia gravis resulting in progressive respiratory failure requiring continuous mechanical ventilation via tracheostomy, as well as multiple cardiac arrests leading to severe anoxic brain injury, was brought to the hospital from a nursing home because of difficulties with ventilation and oxygenation. On presentation to the ED, the patient was found to be agitated and tachypneic on a ventilator, generating low tidal volumes despite elevated peak airway pressures. Before the current presentation, the patient had been mechanically ventilated at a long-term acute care facility for the past 5 years. More recently, staff has noted intermittent loss of tidal volumes, temporarily responding to overinflation of tracheostomy cuff. Additionally, the tracheostomy tube was exchanged for an extra-long tracheostomy tube to improve tidal volumes; however, the problem persisted, prompting the current presentation.

Tracheomegaly Secondary to Tracheotomy Tube Cuff in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: A Case Report

Tracheomegaly has not been reported in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Herein, the authors report a case of tracheomegaly secondary to tracheotomy tube cuff in a patient with ALS. To our knowledge, this is the first report of an ALS patient with tracheomegaly and of tracheomegaly being associated with tracheotomy tube cuff and home tracheotomy mechanical ventilator.The clinician should consider the possibility of tracheomegaly in the differential diagnosis, if a patient with ALS develops repeat air leakage around the tracheotomy tube or rupture of tracheotomy tube cuff.