A 7-year-old boy was playing with his older brother when he accidentally fell and hit his neck and chest on the corner of a wooden TV shelf, breaking his trachea. As a result, he had difficulty breathing, chest pain, and bulging skin on his chin and cheeks. The boy was quickly transferred to the National Children’s Hospital for emergency treatment. The chest computed tomography scan revealed that the child had bilateral pneumothorax, pneumomediastinum, and extensive subcutaneous emphysema, all of which were life-threatening.
Dr. Dang Anh Duong, Head of the Department of Surgical Intensive Treatment, performed immediate surgery on the child’s ruptured trachea, which had a 3 cm vertical rupture. Following the surgery, the child showed signs of improvement, with no difficulty breathing and the ability to eat and drink. He was discharged from the hospital with the need for regular check-ups to monitor his recovery process.
The trachea is a crucial tube responsible for carrying air in the body, made up of cartilage, muscle, and connective tissue. External impact can cause the cartilage to break
