Airway obstruction in the pediatric patient.

In the newborn period and early infancy upper respiratory tract obstruction is commonly caused by congenital and neoplastic disorders, such as laryngomalacia, congenital subglottic stenosis, or brainstem anomalies. However, inflammatory causes of airway obstruction predominate in infancy and childhood. Laryngotracheal foreign bodies and trauma, on the other hand, have no age predilection. The diagnosis and therapy of airway obstruction in the pediatric patient are discussed.