Laryngeal stenosis: A review of staging, treatment, and current research

Laryngotracheal stenosis is a difficult problem for the otolaryngologist/head and neck surgeon to manage. Endotracheal intubation for prolonged mechanical intubation remains the most common cause of laryngotracheal stenosis. External trauma and previous airway surgery are the second and third most common etiologies of laryngotracheal stenosis, respectively. The true incidence of laryngotracheal stenosis is unknown. Definitive surgical management should be postponed until the underlying etiology is identified and eliminated. Diversity of lesion sites and degrees of stenosis compound the difficulty in treating patients with laryngotracheal stenosis. Over the past year, several new techniques for the surgical management of laryngotracheal stenosis have been presented.