Manubrial resection and anterior mediastinal tracheostomy: Friend or Foe?

Objectives/Hypothesis: To review our experience with manubrial resection and anterior mediastinal tracheostomy and formulate operative guidelines to improve the surgical outcome. Study Design: Retrospective study. Methods: Between January 1980 and June 2010, we performed 38 manubrial resections. The indications of the procedure, reconstructive methods, and operative outcomes were analyzed. Results: Fourteen patients had tumors of the hypopharynx/cervical esophagus, eight had parastomal recurrences of laryngeal tumor, four had recurrent esophageal tumors, four had postirradiation sarcoma, four suffered from subglottic/upper tracheal tumors, three had thyroid malignancy, and the remaining patient had tumor recurrence at the previous tracheostomy site. The hospital mortality rate was 5.3% due to bleeding from major vessel erosion. The mean length of the tracheal stump was 5.4 cm, of which 81.6% required relocation inferior to the innominate artery for construction of the mediastinal tracheostomy. Among the different reconstructive methods for the pharyngoesophageal defects, the anastomotic leakage rate was 17.6%, the majority of which required exteriorization followed by second stage reconstruction. The long‐term tracheostomy stenosis rate was 47.4%, the risk of which was significantly increased by anastomotic leakage and necrosis of distal trachea. The use of a pectoralis major flap was shown to protect against this complication. The overall survival was 80.6% at 1 year and 55.6% at 5 years after surgery. Conclusions: With attention to operative details, manubrial resection and anterior mediastinal tracheostomy is a safe procedure with acceptable outcome. It should be performed when indicated to facilitate tumor resection in the cervicothoracic region.