title: Intermittent airway obstruction and superior vena cava syndrome in a patient with an undiagnosed mediastinal mass after cesarean delivery.
abstract: Airway obstruction and cardiovascular collapse may follow the induction of general anesthesia in patients with mediastinal masses. We present a case in which a patient with a diagnosis of an upper gastrointestinal bleed presented for an emergency cesarean delivery. At the conclusion of surgery, the patient had complete airway obstruction during an upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Patients may encounter airway compromise during instrumentation of the esophagus, and the presence of an intrathoracic mass should be included in the differential diagnosis of airway obstruction.
authors.affiliation: *Department of Anesthesiology, †Division of Gastroenterology, ‡Department of Obstetrics/Gynecology, and §Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Evanston Northwestern Healthcare, Evanston, Illinois.
authors.forename: Joseph W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Szokol
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Alspach
authors.forename: Manoj K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Mehta
authors.forename: Barbara V
authors.initials: BV
authors.lastname: Parilla
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Liptay
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002585:Cesarean Section; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D008479:Mediastinal Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D013479:Superior Vena Cava Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology