Tracheal dilatation followed by stenosis in Mounier-Kuhn syndrome. A case report

A patient with previously undiagnosed Mounier-Kuhn syndrome (tracheobronchomegaly) was admitted with a head injury after a fall. The trachea was intubated with an oral tracheal tube with high-volume low-pressure cuff. The intracuff pressure was within the normal safe range recommended by the manufacturer. However, the patient developed tracheal dilatation on the second day after intubation. The trachea was extubated on the 15th day, and it was noticed 48 hours later that the patient was developing a tracheal stenosis at the site of the previous dilatation. The stenosis was so severe that the patient underwent resection-anastomosis surgery of his stenotic tracheal segment 2 months after extubation. It may be preferable in patients with Mounier-Kuhn syndrome who require mechanical ventilation to intubate the trachea with an uncuffed tube and to pack the throat to decrease the chances of gas leak and inhalation.