New era of “resection of the carina and lower trachea”

It has been more than half a century since Abbott reported their experience on carinal resection and reconstruction (1). Tracheal surgery still remains challenging despite improvements in surgical and anesthetic techniques, resulting in thoracic surgeons exploring a new era of “resection of the carina and lower trachea” (2). Minimally invasive thoracic surgery has been widely extended for the resection of peripheral early stage lung cancer. Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy and sublobar resection have become a common procedure. Complete resection and reconstruction of the carina or trachea with VATS and airway management remain challenging. Only few reports of VATS tracheal or carinal resection and reconstruction have been published (3-8). Li and colleagues examined the feasibility of VATS in the treatment of benign and malignant diseases involving the carina and trachea, and made comparisons with relevant techniques (3).