Abstract
Fistula formation between the trachea and the innominate artery following tracheostomy is a rare, but life-threatening complication. Because of its clinical presentation with acute, massive, intractable bleeding, the mortality is nearly 100 % without operation. To the best of our knowledge, the autologous pericardium flap for coverage of the tracheal defect has not been discussed in the English-language literature. We successfully treated one case of tracheoinnominate artery fistula following tracheostomy by using autologous pericardium flap.
Key words
Tracheostomy - Tracheoinnominate artery fistula
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Correspondence
Dr. Ching Tzao
Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Tri-Service General Hospital
325, Cheng Kung Road, Section 2
Taipei, Taiwan
Republic of China
Phone: +886 (2) 87 92 74 03
Fax: +886 (2) 87 92 71 67
Email: doc20325@sinamail.com