Coated expandable metal stents are effective irrespective of airway pathology

Background: Tracheobronchial stents are a treatment option for inoperable benign or malignant tracheobronchial stenosis (TBS) or postoperative bronchopleural fistulas (POBPF). The present study evaluated the outcomes of patients with TBS and POBPF who were treated by placement of recent generation, fully covered, self-expanding metallic stents (SEMS) and determined stent efficacy relative to airway pathology. Methods: From January 2009 to January 2016, 68 patients with TBS or POBPF underwent rigid bronchoscopy, laser/mechanical debridement and placement of fully covered SEMS. Eighteen patients had benign stenosis, 38 had malignant stenosis, and 12 patients had POBPF. Results: Seventy-four SEMS were successfully placed in 68 patients. There were no perioperative deaths. Stent-related complications occurred in 20 (29.4%) patients: granulation tissue formation [TBS group, 10.7% (n= 6 ); POBPF group, 8.3% (n = 1)]; stent fracture [TBS group, 5.4% (n = 3); POBF group, 8.3% (n = 1)], stent migration [TBS group, 7.1% (n = 4); POBF group, 0% (n=0)], severe secretions not removable by flexible bronchoscopy [TBS group, 7.1% (n = 4 ); POBF group, 8.3% (n = 1)]. No stent migration was observed in the POBPF group. Four patients (7.1%) in the TBS group had stent migration requiring stent replacement. After stenting, all TBS patients had a Hugh-Jones classification score improvement ≥ 1 grade and 42 patients (75%) had an improvement ≥ 2 grades. Logistic regression analysis showed that the disease (stenosis vs. fistula) did not influence the occurrence of stent complications [OR 0.96, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.71-1.13, P = 0.13]. Conclusions: Fully covered SEMS are effective and provide a versatile treatment option for patients with inoperable TBS and POBPF.