Tracheal Cartilage Ring Biomechanical Properties for Pediatric Exostent Design¹

Congenital tracheal stenosis (CTS) is a condition that causes narrowing of the tracheal lumen due to a birth defect [1,2]. It is a rare disease with incidence rate estimated to be 1 in 65,000 births per year [3]. CTS is characterized by complete tracheal rings and the absence of a membranous posterior region which also contains a smooth muscle layer. The current standard of care for long segment CTS (LSCTS) >30% length is slide tracheoplasty [2,4]. These surgical procedures are considerably invasive and are associated with significant mortality and morbidity. We are proposing a composite extracellular matrix (ECM)-exostent graft as a solution to avoid the slide tracheoplasty procedure and related shortcomings. Specifically, the intent is to design a compliance matching exostent-graft device that would prevent excessive expansion or tracheal collapse (under positive/negative airway pressures) and also match the stiffness of...