Presentation
Intubated after closed head injury.
Patient Data
Endotracheal tube in left main bronchus, nasogastric tube tip projects below the lower edge of the radiograph. Mild consolidation right lung likely represents contusion in this polytrauma patient.
A coronally reformatted image from the visible human project, an illustration of the tracheobronchial tree from the 1918 edition of Gray's Anatomy and an illustration of the view from inside the trachea above the carina also from the 1918 edition of Gray's Anatomy show that the right bronchus has a more direct origin from the trachea than the left bronchus.
Case Discussion
Most malpositioned endotracheal tubes end up in the right bronchus because the right bronchus has a more direct origin from the trachea than the left. This is an unusual case of a left main bronchial intubation.
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