A refashioned foley catheter: novel cost-effective available stent in pediatric laryngotracheal reconstruction

Abstract

PurposePediatric laryngotracheal reconstruction (LTR) for laryngotracheal stenosis (LTS) mandates stenting in certain situations. This study presents a novel commercially available and cost-effective stent, a refashioned foley catheter.MethodsThis prospective clinical study was performed on pediatric cases with LTS up to 8 years. The study was performed in a tertiary referral center. The selection of the proper foley catheter size for age was explained. The atraumatic insertion maneuver of the stent was also shown in detail in different situations of LTS. The endoscopic removal of the stent was also described. The mean follow-up was 6.45 ± 1.3 months.ResultsThe study included 31 cases using the refashioned foley catheter stents. The study included 17 males and 14 females with a mean age of 3.45 ± 1.09. Subglottic stenosis was the most common cause of LTR in the study (74.2%) cases. The mean duration of stenting was 40.5 ± 3.7 days. Decannulation was achieved in 96.8% of cases. No stent complications were encountered like stent migration, excess granulation tissue, intractable aspiration, or pressure necrosis.ConclusionThe refashioned foley catheter is a novel, available, and inexpensive stent that can be utilized for LTR cases for pediatric LTS. The newly described stent is soft, pliable with atraumatic insertion and easy endoscopic removal with minimal complications.