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Virtual Endoscopy and 3-D Reconstruction in Patients with Airway Pathology

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Virtual Endoscopy and 3D Reconstruction in the Airways

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Abstract

The assessment and airway planning of patients with airway pathology can be challenging as the current bedside airway assessment tools are often inadequate due to their low sensitivity and specificity. Almost all of these patients would have had a multi-plane computerised tomography (CT) of the head and neck as part of the diagnostic process. In addition to this many would also have had a flexible nasal endoscopy with an associated hand-drawing by the surgeon or a still image in the notes. With three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction and virtual endoscopy (VE) performed either by the radiologist, anaesthetist or surgeon on an Apple Mac workstation with easily available software such as OsiriX® and HOROS, an inside simulated view of the airway or the pathology can be obtained. This can then be utilised to formulate an airway management plan. Three-dimensional reconstruction of the patient’s head and neck anatomy gives a better understanding of how it is affected by pathology in and around the upper airway. This well-established tool has already shown its value in diagnosing intra-luminal lesions of the airway and bronchial tree and there is now growing evidence demonstrating the benefits of this technology in visualising and mapping out an airway management plan in patients with head and neck pathology.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK

    Imran Ahmad, Britta Millhoff, Sarah Muldoon & Kayathrie Jeyarajah

Authors
  1. Imran Ahmad
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  2. Britta Millhoff
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  3. Sarah Muldoon
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  4. Kayathrie Jeyarajah
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Anesthesiology, Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Doha, Qatar

    Nabil A. Shallik  & Marco A. E. Marcus  & 

  2. Department of Anesthesiology, ICU and Perioperative Medicine, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar

    Nabil A. Shallik  & Marco A. E. Marcus  & 

  3. Department of Anesthesiology and Surgical Intensive Care, Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt

    Nabil A. Shallik

  4. Clinical Radiology and Medical Imaging Department, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar

    Abbas H. Moustafa

  5. Diagnostic Radiology and Medical Imaging, El Minia University, El Minia, Egypt

    Abbas H. Moustafa

  6. Department of Clinical Anesthesiology, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar

    Marco A. E. Marcus

5.1 Electronic Supplementary Material

Real-time assessment of the upper airway obtained by flexible naso-endoscopy (the main editor is the one appearing in the video). (MP4 120839 kb)

Volume-rendering technique TTP showing the level and extent of the trans-glottic indentation and displacement of the airway by the mass lesion (MP4 3192 kb)

Glottic tumour involving the arytenoid cartilages seen by VE movie (MP4 3325 kb)

Large supraglottic obstructing airway pathology arising from the right vallecula and pushing the epiglottis over to the left proved by VE movie (MP4 4262 kb)

VE of a patient with a base of tongue tumour and the abnormally shaped epiglottis (MP4 3469 kb)

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Ahmad, I., Millhoff, B., Muldoon, S., Jeyarajah, K. (2019). Virtual Endoscopy and 3-D Reconstruction in Patients with Airway Pathology. In: Shallik, N.A., Moustafa, A.H., Marcus, M.A.E. (eds) Virtual Endoscopy and 3D Reconstruction in the Airways. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23253-5_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23253-5_5

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-23252-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-23253-5

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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