title: Successful closure of a tracheocutaneous fistula after tracheostomy using two skin flaps: a case report.
abstract: A tracheocutaneous fistula may develop when a tracheostomy orifice epithelializes during a prolonged course of healing or undernutrition. Various techniques for closing such fistulae have been reported. However, a standard procedure has not yet been established. We, herein, present a case involving a 35-year-old woman who developed a tracheocutaneous fistula after tracheostomy. We closed the fistula using two skin flaps to cover the tracheal lumen and skin defect, respectively. The advantage of this technique is that it allows the tracheal lumen to be covered by inversed skin epithelium and ensures that the suture line of the skin does not match up with that of the subcutaneous tissue.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan. yuiw@mac.com.
authors.forename: Yui
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Tadashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Umehara
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Aya
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Harada
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Masaya
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aoki
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Takuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tokunaga
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Soichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Go
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kamimura
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuhiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wakida
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Toshiyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nagata
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Tsunayuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Otsuka
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Naoya
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yokomakura
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Kota
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kariatsumari
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, Kagoshima, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University, 8-35-1 Sakuragaoka, Kagoshima, 890-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Masami
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sato
keywords: Skin flap; Tracheocutaneous fistula; Tracheostomy