Office-based retrograde transtracheal application of mitomycin C.

OBJECTIVES

The utility of topical mitomycin C (MMC) as an adjuvant treatment in the management of laryngeal and tracheal stenosis has been studied; however, the ideal timing of MMC application has not been fully elucidated. There is a paucity of studies evaluating the timing of MMC application after surgical airway intervention for stenosis. The purpose of this study is to describe a novel technique for MMC application that allows for delayed application in the unsedated, office-based setting, approximately one week following endoscopic airway dilation.

METHODS

A technique for retrograde transtracheal application of MMC was developed and utilized in 3 tracheostomy-dependent patients with subglottic stenosis and glottic stenosis with bilateral vocal fold immobility. After administration of topical anesthesia, a MMC (0.4 mg/ml) coated pledget was advanced via a transtracheal approach and directed to the area of stenosis in retrograde fashion using endoscopic frontal sinus instruments. Appropriate positioning of the pledget was confirmed via transnasal flexible fiberoptic laryngoscopy.

RESULTS

All 3 patients underwent successful in-office retrograde application of MMC onto the area of laryngeal stenosis 7-9 days after their preceding surgery. There were no complications. Two patients achieved decannulation while the third patient's management was interrupted due to cancer treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

We present a novel and well tolerated technique for delayed in-office application of MMC in tracheostomy-dependent patients with laryngeal stenosis. This approach can facilitate the study of the ideal timing of topical MMC use in airway stenosis.