Partial airway obstruction of the Hi-Lo Evac endotracheal tube caused by kinked to the back side of the dorsal suction lumen.

Abstract

Obstruction of an endotracheal tube (ETT) is a potentially life-threatening event. We present a case report of a 76-years-old female with an unusual partial obstruction of the Hi-Lo Evac (Mallinckrodt Medical; Athlone, Ireland) ETT (Evac ETT) caused by kinked port of dorsal suction lumen. She had severe skeletal deformity (gibbus). Thereby, her cervical spine is assumed to be severe backward tilt position at supine position. The kinked port appears to be due to severe cervical lordosis. We discuss how early consideration of the diagnosis and optimal initial management reduce the risk of an adverse outcome.