Tracheal diverticulum: clinical features, diagnosis, and surgical treatment

Attention to tracheal diverticulum (TD) is due to its low incidence. There are few literature data mostly concerning uncomplicated cases. Karl von Rokitansky first described DT in 1838. TD may be congenital or acquired. It is a rare disease caused by congenital or acquired tracheal wall weakness. Morphologically, TD is an air cavity communicating with tracheal lumen. TD typically has no specific clinical presentation. It is detected incidentally after CT. Diagnosis is based on CT data and endoscopic examination. Widespread high-resolution CT and video endoscopy expanded diagnostic capabilities for rare tracheal diseases. According to autopsy data, various TDs are detected in 1–2% of cases. Following CT, TD is incidentally detected in 2.0–3.7% of patients. In Russian-language literature, we found no descriptions of successful surgical treatment of TD involving circular tracheal resection. We present surgical treatment of TD in a patient with complicated course of disease.