BACKGROUND Early tracheostomy can reduce the time required for mechanical ventilation, the duration of ICU stay, and treatment expenses. Choosing the optimal time for tracheostomy in patients with severe head injury is therefore important. The purpose of this study was to find the optimal time for tracheostomy according to Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS). MATERIALS AND METHODS In this prospective st...

BACKGROUND Early tracheostomy may decrease the duration of mechanical ventilation, sedation exposure, and intensive care stay, possibly resulting in improved clinical outcomes, but the evidence is conflicting. METHODS Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials in patients allocated to tracheostomy within 10 days of start of mechanical ventilation was compared with placement of t...

OBJECTIVE To provide an up-to-date review of pediatric tracheostomy, primarily focusing on indications, surgical technique, complications and hospital and home care. SOURCES MEDLINE and PubMed databases were searched using the following keywords: tracheostomy, tracheotomy, children, newborn. SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS Indications for tracheostomy in children are changing. Today the most common...

BACKGROUND The morbidity of surgical tracheostomy performed in critically ill patients is not well-known. Accordingly, the aim of this prospective study was to determine the incidence and severity of complications associated with subthyroid tracheostomy and cricothyroidotomy when performed in the ICU. METHODS Over a 2-year period, individual consecutive patients who were undergoing an electiv...

BACKGROUND A tracheostomy is often performed when patients cannot be weaned from mechanical ventilation. Respiratory infections (ventilator-associated pneumonia and infection of the lower respiratory tract) complicate the course of hospitalization in patients receiving mechanical ventilation. OBJECTIVES To evaluate respiratory infections before and after a percutaneous tracheostomy and to des...

BACKGROUND Tracheostomy is common in intensive care unit patients, but the appropriate timing is controversial. OBJECTIVE To determine whether earlier tracheostomy is associated with greater long-term survival. DESIGN Retrospective cohort analysis. SETTING Acute care hospitals in Ontario, Canada (n = 114). PATIENTS All mechanically ventilated intensive care unit patients who received tr...

Tracheostomy is one of the most frequently performed procedures in intensive care units. Bedside percutaneous tracheostomy has become an increasingly popular option to standard open tracheostomy. Several contraindications for percutaneous tracheostomy, including an enlarged thyroid isthmus, have been described. However, as experience with this technique has increased, most of the described cont...

INTRODUCTION Current prevalence estimates of gastrostomy tube (GT)/tracheostomy placement in hospitalized patients with anoxic/hypoxic ischemic encephalopathic injury (AHIE) post cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) are unknown. We sought, to estimate the prevalence of AHIE in hospitalized patients who had CPR and to identify patient/hospital level factors that predict the performance of GT/trac...

A minority of patients with neuromuscular disease require placement of a tracheostomy, usually for the purpose of providing mechanical ventilation. Often the tracheostomy is performed during a hospital admission for an acute illness. The debate about the appropriate timing of tracheostomy in critically ill patients has not been resolved; however, the weight of evidence now favors performing a t...