[Tracheal rupture following endotracheal intubation for an emergency cesarean]

This is a case report of a 45-year-old patient, 39 weeks of gestation, who was intubated via rapid sequence induction (RSI) for an emergency cesarean. The indication for emergency cesarean was a pathological cardiotocography during the ejection phase following labor induction.Despite the primary use of a video laryngoscope, there was difficulty aligning the laryngeal axis. Therefore, an internal stylet was used to heavily angulate the endotracheal tube (ETT) to a hockey stick shape to enter the larynx.Postoperative dyspnea and extensive facial swelling were initially diagnosed as an allergic reaction. Only 22 h later the diagnosis of tracheal rupture was confirmed following computer tomography.We hypothesized that the mechanism of injury was due to excessive pressure transmitted to the tip of the ETT. This probably occurred due to a leverage effect caused by the withdrawal of the heavily bent stylet from the ETT, forcing an intratracheal cranial movement of the ETT.By conducting an experiment on a pig's trachea, we were able to visualize this mechanism of injury. In addition, we were able to demonstrate that bending the stylet to a similar angle as the laryngoscope blade led to minimal movement of the tip of the ETT.Therefore, when using a stylet during intubation, we recommend bending the ETT and stylet to the shape of the used laryngoscope blade and retracting the stylet at a similar angle to avoid complications, such as tracheal rupture.