Surgical management of an infantile elliptical cricoid: Endoscopic posterior laryngotracheoplasty utilizing a resorbable plate

The cricoid is a circular “ring” of cartilage in the airway. When the lateral walls of the cricoid approximate, it takes the shape of an ellipse. In severe cases, this also reduces the glottic aperture and causes respiratory distress, stridor, and failure to thrive. The elliptical cricoid has limited surgical options outside of open laryngotracheal procedures and tracheostomy. Recently, alternatives to autologous grafts have been utilized in airway reconstruction to reduce harvest site morbidity and increase operating room efficiency. Herein a case is presented that demonstrates the successful use of a resorbable plate in augmenting the posterior larynx in an infant with a severely elliptical cricoid to avoid a tracheostomy.