Anterior cricoid split: a "simple" surgical procedure and a potentially complicated care problem.

The anterior cricoid split (ACS) has been described as an alternative to tracheotomy in management of the premature infant who develops upper airway compromise after extubation. Sixteen patients at the Children's Hospital National Medical Center (CHNMC) and ten patients at four other hospitals had the ACS operation. For the patients at the CHNMC, average gestational age was 29 weeks, birth weight was 1,264 g, and length of time intubated was 6.2 weeks. Overall success in achieving extubation after the ACS was 69% at the CHNMC and 40% for the group of other hospitals. However, a success rate in achieving extubation after ACS was 75% for both the CHNMC and the group of other hospitals in patients who had become stable enough to have been previously discharged from a neonatal intensive care unit. Problems encountered following the ACS include malposition of tip of the endotracheal tube, increased need for assisted ventilation, myocardial infarction, subcutaneous emphysema, and unexplained inability to ventilate. Analysis of results suggests that the ACS is a valuable operative procedure that can avoid need for tracheotomy in infants with adequate pulmonary function who have narrowing within the airway at the subglottic level. Postoperative care may be problematic and the infant having had the ACS is best managed by an experienced team of experts who are familiar with care of the infant with respiratory insufficiency.