%0 Case Reports
%T Tracheal repair with sternocleidomastoid flap in mediastinoscopic surgery for esophageal cancer.
%A Yoshida C
%A Chang SS
%A Okamoto T
%J Asian J Endosc Surg
%V 17
%N 3
%D 2024 Jul
%M 38965733
暂无%R 10.1111/ases.13356
%X Tracheal injury during mediastinoscopic esophagectomy is a life-threatening complication that is challenging to manage. However, no precise treatment has been defined. An 80-year-old male patient with upper esophageal cancer underwent a mediastinoscopic esophagectomy and gastric tube reconstruction through the posterior mediastinal route. When the esophagus was separated from the trachea using a bipolar vessel sealing system, the left side of the membranous trachea incurred a 3-cm defect 7 cm below the sternal notch. We successfully repaired the tracheal injury not by directly suturing the defect but by reinforcing it with a pedicle sternocleidomastoid flap. The gastric tube was placed over the tracheal repair for esophageal reconstruction via a posterior mediastinal route. As a result, the patient recovered well and was discharged. A sternocleidomastoid flap might be another surgical option for reinforcement flaps in tracheal injuries.