Postoperative Acute Airway Obstruction Status Post Anterior Cervical Fusion
摘要
Life threatening postoperative airway respiratory distress can occur at late as 7 days post anterior cervical spinal fusion. Etiology includes angioedema, retropharyngeal hematoma, pharyngolaryngeal edema, cervical abscess, or cerebrospinal fluid leak. In an emergent situation, efficient performance of cricothyrotomy is an essential skill. It is critically important to have immediately available both a skilled surgeon and appropriate equipment to deal with obstruction of airway is critical.