Anesthesia in a patient with relapsing polychondritis

A 46-year-old female with relapsing polychondritis (RP) was scheduled for surgical repair of saddle-nose and peri-chondritic ear. RP is a rare systemic, inflammatory, and destructive disease of the cartilaginous structures leading to multiple functional disorders in the affected organs. Preoperatively, her chest radiogram of the trachea showed narrowing in diameters which altered about 2 mm with expiration and inspiration. Propofol administered intravenously was given as induction and anesthesia was maintained with nitrous oxide-oxygen-sevoflurane with spontaneous ventilation using laryngeal mask airway. The operation was over uneventfully. Anesthesiologic management requires careful preoperative evaluation of vital organ functions, in particular, respiration.