Otolaryngology head and neck surgeons, general surgeons, and thoracic surgeons are required to know how to perform various types of open airway surgery. However, due to a decrease in the number of patients with subglottic or tracheal stenosis and resident work hour restrictions, exposure to these cases during training is often inadequate. As a result, there is an ever-increasing need for training programs to develop lifelike open airway simulation models. These in turn will promote competency-based surgical residency training and a drive toward continuing medical education and maintenance of certification.

Written by an international group of airway surgeons, Airway Reconstruction Surgical Dissection Manual is an essential guide for residents and fellows in the fields of otolaryngology head and neck surgery, general surgery, and thoracic surgery, as well as consultant surgeons in these specialties who are responsible for managing airway conditions, but infrequently perform open airway surgeries.

This manual covers everything the trainee requires for mastering open airway surgical procedures on a live animal and extrapolating these techniques to human patients. It is extensively detailed for the beginner or for the experienced surgeon perfecting his or her technique, and can be used by the individual working at his or her own pace or in a group setting.

There are several key features to this text:

Complex tasks are broken into rudimentary steps so they can be mastered by trainees at any level
High-quality photos and diagrams of each surgical step convey information clearly and succinctly
Procedural differences between animals and humans are clearly identified for easy and practical application to human patients
Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgments
1. Introduction
Procurement, Transport, and Housing of Animals
Operating Room Setup
Surgical Instruments
2. Induction of Anesthesia and Intubation
3. Exposure and Anatomy of the Pig Airway: Comparison with the Human Airway
4. Anterior Cricoid Split (Single Stage)
5. Harvest of Thyroid Ala Cartilage Graft
6. Anterior Laryngotracheoplasty Using Thyroid Ala Cartilage Graft (Single Stage)
7. Harvest of Costal Cartilage Graft
8. Anterior Laryngotracheoplasty Using Costal Cartilage Graft (Single Stage)
9. Posterior Laryngotracheoplasty Using Costal Cartilage Graft (Single Stage)
10. Combined Anterior and Posterior Laryngotracheoplasty Using Costal Cartilage Grafts (Single Stage)
11. Tracheotomy
12. Placing a Stent (Double Stage)
13. Cricotracheal Resection (Single Stage)
14. Slide Tracheoplasty (Single Stage)

Index

Note: Animals used in these dissections are Yorkshire pigs. All photos are taken with the surgeon standing on the pig's right side unless otherwise specified.