OBJECTIVETracheobronchial injuries are defined as injuries involving the trachea and/or bronchi from the level of the cricoid cartilage extending up to the division of the bronchi. We present a case series with most of the tracheobronchial injuries found to be sustained after penetrating trauma.

METHODSA retrospective review was performed at the Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan. From January 2004 to December 2009, 168 patients with thoracic trauma were treated, of whom 15 were recognized to have major tracheobronchial and pulmonary injuries.

RESULTSThe average age was 31 years with most of the patients being male (14:1). Among them,11 patients had penetrating trauma as the main cause of injury, 3 patients had blunt trauma from road traffic accidents, only 1 patient had combined trauma (blunt and penetrating trauma). Eight patients were diagnosed based on radiological findings. All the patients were treated surgically. Lobectomy was the most common intervention performed in 7 patients. The mortality rate was 7% (1 patient). Most patients survived with no sequelae (10 patients) while 5 survived with disability. We found that penetrating trauma was the leading cause of injury in our series. The severity of injury depends upon the weapon causing the trauma. Patients in our series had multiple injuries and required surgical management.

CONCLUSIONSTracheobronchial injuries are rare but potentially life threatening. They require quick diagnosis and management. Diagnosis tends to be difficult since there are no specialised diagnostic modalities available at present.

Adult ; Bronchi ; injuries ; Developing Countries ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Retrospective Studies ; Trachea ; injuries

Subclavian artery thrombosis is a rare complication of clavicle fractures. We reported a 20-year-old man who was admitted to the emergency room after a road traffic accident. He was a pedestrian who was initially hit by a bus and after he fell down on the road, he was run over by a car. On evaluation, he was found to have multiple facial and rib fractures, distal right humerus and right clavicle fracture. Significantly, right radial pulse was absent. After further evaluation including Doppler studies and an angiography which revealed complete obstruction of right subclavian artery just distal to its 1st portion, the patient was urgently taken to the operation room. A midclavicular fracture was adjacent to the injured vessel. We established proximal and distal control, removed damaged part. After mobilizing the subclavian artery, an end-to-end anastomosis was made. Then open reduction and internal fixation of right distal humerus was performed. The rest of the postoperative course was unremarkable. To prevent complications of subclavian artery thrombosis, different treatment modalities can be used, including anticoagulation therapy, angioplasty, stenting and bypass procedures.
Anastomosis, Surgical ; Clavicle ; injuries ; Fractures, Bone ; complications ; Humans ; Male ; Subclavian Artery ; injuries ; surgery ; Thrombosis ; etiology ; surgery ; Young Adult