Central airway obstruction treated with initial support by venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation

A 24-year-old man with Down syndrome and congenital tracheal stenosis, who had undergone cartilage patch tracheoplasty twice in infancy, was transferred from a local hospital to manage an airway emergency. On arrival, the patient was in severe respiratory distress. Increased airway pressure following endotracheal intubation complicated the administration of mechanical ventilation. CT of the chest showed widespread consolidation and tracheal stenosis 3 cm above the carina distal to the tip of the endotracheal tube. The diagnosis was tracheal stenosis with type A influenza infection. The patient was transferred to another hospital for initiating venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV-ECMO). Intubation with a 6.0 mm spiral tube was successful after intraluminal balloon dilatation of the tracheal stenosis. The patient was admitted to the intensive care unit and was weaned off VV-ECMO on day 3 due to improvement in respiratory status. A tracheotomy was performed on day 28 and the tracheal tube was removed on day 41.