Thorax Online First, published on July 19, 2012 as 10.1136/thoraxjnl-2012-202221 Chest clinic OPINION Thorax: first published as 10.1136/thoraxjnl-2012-202221 on 19 July 2012. Downloaded from Middle airway obstructiondit may be happening under our noses Philip G Bardin,1 Sebastian L Johnston,2 Garun Hamilton1 < Additional materials are ABSTRACT for this conceptual error to be refuted.2 The virus is published online only. To view Background Lower airway obstruction has evolved to now understood to spread from nose to lung, and these files please visit the denote pathologies associated with diseases of the lung, appropriate recognition of the close association journal online (http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1136/ whereas, conditions proximal to the lung embody upper between upper and lower airway pathologies has thoraxjnl-2012-202221/content/ airway obstruction. This approach has disconnected had positive outcomes. An example is novel strat- early/recent). diseases of the larynx and trachea from the lung, and egies that may not be able to prevent colds, but 1Lung and Sleep Medicine, removed the ‘middle airway’ from the interest and that could ameliorate virus asthma exacerbations Monash University and Hospital involvement of respiratory physicians and scientists. through the use of inhaled interferon.3 and Monash Institute of Medical However, recent studies have indicated that dysfunction Accumulating evidence suggests that the middle Research (MIMR), Melbourne, of this anatomical region may be a key component of Australia airway plays a key role in airway obstruction either 2Respiratory Medicine, Imperial overall airway obstruction, either independently or in independently or with coexisting lung disease. In College, London, UK combination with lung disease. New diagnostic this paper, we consider why this component has modalities to effectively diagnose middle airway been ignored, and propose that appropriate recog- Correspondence to obstruction are being developed, and it has become nition of ‘middle airway obstruction’ may facilitate Professor Phil G Bardin, Lung and Sleep Medicine, Monash feasible to identify and quantify middle airway an integrated approach to optimised diagnosis and Medical Centre, 246 Clayton obstruction. management of overall airway obstruction. Road, Clayton 3168, Melbourne, Conclusion We, therefore, propose adding ‘middle Victoria 3168, Australia; airway obstruction’ to our nomenclature to embed it in [email protected] Lower airway obstruction diagnostic approaches, and to allow due emphasis on Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Received 31 May 2012 this neglected anatomical region. (COPD) are diseases characterised by lower airway Accepted 15 June 2012 obstruction, with breathlessness as a frequent symptom. This, in turn, leads to a search for other INTRODUCTION symptoms consistent with an obstructive abnor- Chest clinic Airway obstruction has conventionally been mality (wheezing) and, when combined with clas- 1 divided into lower and upper airway obstruction, sical lung function abnormalities, a clinical http://thorax.bmj.com/ fi a distinction based on the anatomical location of diagnosis of asthma or COPD can be veri ed. The the diseases causing symptoms. Lower airway possibility that anything other than lung disease fi obstruction has evolved over time to denote and lower airway obstruction contribute signi - ’ pathologies associated with diseases of the lung. In cantly to a particular patient s symptoms is seldom contrast, diverse conditions proximal to the lung considered. In asthma and COPD, an emphasis by have been grouped together as upper airway respiratory physicians on the physiology, pathology obstruction. To date, a logical additional demarca- and clinical aspects of lower airway obstruction tion (ie, upper airway: nose, sinuses, pharynx and has, therefore, become entrenched. on October 1, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. middle airway: larynx, trachea) has not been proposed. Upper airway obstruction A one-dimensional approach to the upper airway The upper airway is defined as the anatomical area is no longer in step with modern clinical practice. between the nose and the trachea, with the trachea Nasal obstruction and tracheal stenosis, for mostly considered as part of the upper airway example, are grouped together as upper airway rather than the lung.4 More logical subdivisions (ie, obstruction although diagnostic and therapeutic upper and middle airway) have not been proposed approaches are vastly different. In a clinical in spite of the differences in anatomical structure context, middle airway dysfunction is frequently and function in the upper airway. excluded from diagnostic pathways for common Interest in middle airway obstruction was complaints, such as breathlessness. Current kindled when vocal cord dysfunction (VCD) was approaches, therefore, discourage recognition of the described as a disorder that mimics asthma.5 middle airway by respiratory physicians (tradi- Subsequent studies suggested that VCD was tional focus on the lung) and allergists (focus on the common, also as a coexisting condition in asthma.6 nose and sinuses). However, with time, interest in this association The historical separation of upper and lower waned. In COPD, a body of research investigating airway pathologies has also dogged attempts to link a contribution of middle airway dysfunction to the disease conditions involving both upper and lower symptoms and overall disease pathology in the airways. Experts rejected the notion that nasal condition has been distinctly lacking. rhinovirus infection is causally associated with Nasal symptoms are easily differentiated from asthma exacerbations, and it took almost 30 years lung complaints, whereas, breathlessness originating CopyrightBardin PG, Johnston Article SL, author Hamilton G. (orThorax their(2012). employer) doi:10.1136/thoraxjnl-2012-202221 2012. Produced by BMJ Publishing Group Ltd (& BTS) under licence. 1 of 3 Chest clinic in the middle airway is difficult to distinguish from lung symp- Middle airway obstruction as a separate clinical entity Thorax: first published as 10.1136/thoraxjnl-2012-202221 on 19 July 2012. Downloaded from toms.7 Additional unconventional symptoms (such as dysphonia) Croup in children is the quintessential disease of middle airway may alert the clinician but are often not elicited, and breathless- obstruction. It is an acute condition with explicit symptoms ness is frequently the dominant complaint. In a clinical context, clearly referable to the larynx. However, this distinctive clinical this leads to nasal symptoms being noted with other non-nasal scenario is not found in chronic diseases, and it is an unlikely respiratory symptoms being automatically attributed to new or consideration if coexistent lower airway illness provides an existing lung disease. We are therefore caught in a trap of our own adequate explanation for patients’ symptoms. We have argued making: middle airway obstruction produces symptoms identical that the middle airway has received limited attention, and in to lower airway obstruction, and these symptoms will be habit- many respects it has been ignored. Why should this change, and ually attributed to the lung since it is the cause we are all familiar why is there merit in changing our nomenclature to define withdand understand. ‘middle airway obstruction’ as a clinical entity? Why has middle airway dysfunction been able to masquerade The chief reason is that new diagnostic modalities to effec- for so long as a lung condition? Besides similar symptoms, the tively diagnose middle airway obstruction are being progres- main reason is the difficulty to make a definitive diagnosis. sively developed, and it has become feasible to identify and Endoscopy was first used to diagnose VCD5 and has remained quantify middle airway obstruction. Significant developments the gold standard. However, endoscopy has important draw- have occurred in the context of asthma, a disease where many backs and may not be available in the window period when clinicians have long suspected that laryngeal dysfunction may patients have symptoms. The procedure is not pleasant and play a complementary role in the causation of symptoms.7 cannot be accurately quantified since it is dependent on the Diagnostic verification has been challenging, but recently, operator making a subjective assessment with diagnosis (yes or studies using non-invasive high-speed CT imaging of the larynx no) during physiological variations in airway calibre and vocal and trachea have provided indications of how this may be cord movement. Moreover, artifactual responses caused by the achieved.89Originally developed for cardiac investigation, 320- procedure itself are often present and usually difficult to slice CT can be used to study the functions of the larynx and exclude. trachea in the middle airway. The technique generates images with ‘volumes’ of 16 cm3 (rather than 4 cm3 for 64-slice CT) Chest clinic http://thorax.bmj.com/ on October 1, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. Figure 2 Demonstrations of vocal cord function in two asthmatic patients using 320-slice CT larynx. Upper stippled curves denote mean ratio, and lower curves show the lower limit of normal (LLN). Patient Figure 1 Ratio of vocal cord diameter to tracheal diameter over curve (solid line) shows normal function in (A), and prolonged a breath cycle in 15 healthy subjects is demonstrated (A). The patient abnormality in (B) during both inspiration and expiration. In (B), vocal curves were