Anomalous Tracheal Bronchus With Tracheal Hypoplasia

The most common tracheal abnormalities concern the right upper lobe take-off. The apical segment is most commonly involved with a tracheal bronchus. It is rarely accompanied by tracheal stenosis. A patient had a tracheal bronchus to the posterior segment with tracheal hypoplasia so severe that neither tracheostomy tube nor bronchoscope could pass the site of aberrant arborization. We report our experience to alert surgeons, dealing with airway problems, that "croup" symptoms, not relieved by tracheostomy, require endoscopy to assess for airway stenosis and to evaluate for abnormal bronchial patterns.