Congenital airway anomalies and syndromes associated in newborns with esophageal atresia

• Published in: Journal of Pediatric Surgery Open Vol. 8; p. 100167
• Main Authors: Norambuena, Claudia, Varela, Patricio, Ramírez, Yovanca, Leopold, Eduardo, Godoy, Jorge, Weibel, Alvaro
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Inc 01.10.2024; Elsevier
• Subjects: Airway anomalies; Esophageal atresia; IV Prognosis study; Laryngotracheobronchoscopy; Tracheoesophageal fistula; Airway anomalies; OR; TEF; IV Prognosis study; Esophageal atresia; EA; Laryngotracheobronchoscopy; Tracheoesophageal fistula
• ISSN: 2949-7116; 2949-7116
• DOI: 10.1016/j.yjpso.2024.100167

•What is currently known about this topic?•Esophageal atresia is frequently encountered associated to other congenital malformations and syndromes.•What new information is contained in this article?•Airway anomalies are common in patients with esophageal atresia and should be actively looked for, like cleft and second missed fistula.•Airway endoscopy allows estimation of esophageal gap. This study aims to define the associated comorbidities, syndromes and anatomic findings in newborns with esophageal atresia using bronchoscopy. Retrospective analysis of the database was performed on patients that underwent surgery with esophageal atresia or tracheoesophageal fistula diagnosis between 2016 and 2023 in Dr. Luis Calvo Mackenna Children´s Hospital in whom an airway study was done with rigid laryngotracheoscopy. Demographic data, comorbidities and airway anomalies were registered. Data from 37 patients was analyzed. Comorbidities were present in 62.1 % of the patients. Airway anomalies such as tracheomalacia, laryngomalacia, tracheal diverticulum, congenital tracheal stenosis and cleft were present in 56.75 % of the patients. 72.9 % of the patients had Type C EA and in 32.4 % of the cases tracheoesophageal fistula was located at the carina. In the last 7 years we have done an airway study in 82.2 % of newborns with esophageal atresia. There is a high percentage of patients with airway anomalies, therefore we consider the importance of performing an endoscopic airway study in all patients with EA.