Insuficiencia respiratoria por obstrucción de la vía aérea superior en el postoperatorio de la cirugía de columna cervical por vía anterior

Upper airway obstruction after anterior cervical spine surgery is an unforeseen event and the emergency assessment of the airway may not coincide with the assessment of the anesthetist during the preanesthetic visit. This event may constitute an emergency for which preparation times and resources may differ from those available when this complication is foreseen. The problem for the anesthetist is not the impossibility of tracheal intubation but rather the difficulty of ventilating through a facial mask or supraglottic device, possibly with life-threatening consequences.