Primary posterior tracheopexy in esophageal atresia with tracheomalacia: From innovation to multicenter RCT

Tracheomalacia (TM) is a common comorbidity in children with esophageal atresia (EA), reported in up to 87 % of patients. Around 30 % of EA patients develop severe TM associated with recurrent respiratory morbidity. In such cases, surgical intervention may be required. Traditionally, treatment involved secondary procedures such as aortopexy or posterior tracheopexy. More recently, primary posterior tracheopexy (PPT) has been adopted in an increasing number of centers.The evolution of the surgical treatment of TM from secondary to primary intervention is described.