Abstract
Laryngotracheal reconstruction is the most common and effective treatment in childhood subglottic stenosis (SGS). Our aim is to review the success rate of laryngotracheoplasty (LTP) in pediatric high grade SGS cases in our tertiary center. The retrospective review was conducted on children with high grade subglottic stenosis who had undergone laryngotracheoplasty over a 7-year period (2013-2020) in tertiary pediatric care. A total of 20 patients who had history of high grade SGS during the stipulated period were included. All of them had undergone LTP. Decannulation was considered the primary outcome measure of success. Surveillance bronchoscopy was performed one year post airway reconstruction to detect residual stenosis. From January 2013 to December 2020, 20 patients aged between 1 and 16 years old underwent LTP. Among them, 10 patients (50%) had Grade III SGS while 5 had Grade III SGS with glottis stenosis (25%). The remaining 5 (25%) had severe Grade IV stenosis. Decannulation was achieved in 14 patients overall (70%) including 1 with revision. These 14 patients who achieved decannulation included 7 out of the 10 patients (70%) with Grade III, 2 out of the 5 (40%) patients with Grade III with glottic involvement, and 4 out of the 5 patients (80%) with Grade IV SGS. Fifteen (80%) patients had double stage LTP while 5 patients had single stage LTP. The study suggests that LTP is a promising approach in the treatment of Complex SGS. Furthermore, pediatric SGS, which is inherently complicated, can be treated with LTP effectively.