The anesthetic challenges of a diagnostic biopsy of a large posterior mediastinal mass causing severe obstruction at the carinal level- Case report

Abstract

There is abundant literature about the anesthetic management of anterior mediastinal masses. There is also a perception that posterior mediastinal masses pose less significant problems compared to anterior mediastinal masses. In our case report, we describe the successful anesthetic management for a patient with symptomatic airway obstruction from a posterior mediastinal mass that required mediastinoscopy. Our report demonstrates that posterior mediastinal masses can be as difficult to manage as anterior mediastinal masses. It also highlights the importance of multidisciplinary cooperation, adequate preoperative planning and anticipation of problems during anesthesia.