Magnetic resonance imaging of the pediatric airway. Compared with findings at surgery and/or endoscopy.

Evaluation of the pediatric airway is often complex and may require multiple imaging techniques and invasive procedures. We performed magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of the airway in 34 children with clinical evidence of chronic airway obstruction and compared MR findings with those obtained by surgery and/or endoscopy. MR diagnoses included vascular compression in 15 patients, primary tracheomalacic states in 12 patients, and mediastinal masses in 4 patients. Findings were normal for 3 patients. The MR findings were in agreement with the endoscopic findings in 25 of 28 cases and in agreement with the surgical findings in 21 of 21 cases. We conclude that MR imaging is a useful diagnostic tool in the evaluation of the pediatric airway because it may provide a specific diagnosis while obviating the need for more invasive studies.