CTICasesThrough-and-Through Tracheal Stab Wound with Pneumothorax and Pneumomediastinum
Imaging findings
Initial chest radiograph revealed a large pneumothorax, pneumomediastinum, and subcutaneous emphysema. Neck CT showed extensive soft tissue gas, an anterior tracheal wall defect, and a posterior membranous tracheal defect. A subsequent chest CT after initial neck exploration and repair further delineated the full extent of the injury, showing a knife tract extending from the tracheal defects into the right upper lobe parenchyma, having missed all vital mediastinal structures.
Key takeaways
Penetrating trauma to the neck and mediastinum can cause life-threatening airway injuries, such as through-and-through tracheal stab wounds. These injuries commonly result in extensive pneumothorax, pneumomediastinum, and subcutaneous emphysema due to air leak. Detailed CT imaging is crucial for localizing the tracheal defects and assessing the trajectory of the penetrating object, which can remarkably spare major vessels. Management may involve surgical repair and, for membranous defects, tracheal stenting.
AI-assisted summary — may contain errors. Verify against the source video. Learn more
More from this webinar
- Diffuse Myocardial CalcificationMetabolic
- Villous Left Atrial Myxoma with Embolic Brain InfarctsNeoplastic
- Diffuse Coronary Artery Ectasia of Unclear EtiologyVascular
- Subendocardial Perfusion Defects with Normal Contractility and Discrepant Angiography (Possible Syndrome X)Vascular
- Metastatic Melanoma to Rib with Extrapleural MassNeoplastic
- Left Lung Agenesis with Right Lung Extension into Left HemithoraxCongenital
- Syphilitic Lung Nodules (Gummata) Mimicking Fungal InfectionInfection
- Constrictive Bronchiolitis in Rheumatoid Arthritis with Complicating Invasive AspergillosisAutoimmune
See all cases from August 20, 2016 →