Stenting for critical airway stenosis under percutaneous cardiopulmonary support

Airway stenting for severe central airway stenosis is inherently a dangerous procedure. There is the risk of critical airway obstruction due to bleeding, tumor debris, and airway perforation during the procedure. Once such situations occur, percutaneous cardiopulmonary support (PCPS) can be one of the most valuable rescue options to prevent critical hypoxic complications. At our institute, four of 49 patients who received stenting or other airway intervention required PCPS support (8%). Two of these cases required PCPS to be performed in an emergency setting during the procedure while the procedure was elective in the other 2. All procedures were performed effectively and safely without any complications caused by PCPS, including massive airway bleeding due to anticoagulant treatment. Patients were able to be weaned off PCPS uneventfully. PCPS is considered to be a valuable procedure in remedying critical hypoxic situations during airway intervention. Read at the Fifty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Japanese Association for Thoracic Surgery, Symposium, Tokyo, November 19–21,2003.