Tracheostomy in the neurosurgical setting is an important tool for airway maintenance, especially in Cerebellopontine angle tumour patients. A retrospective study was conducted at the Neurosurgical centre of a tertiary care institute for analyzing the factors dictating early or late tracheostomy and its consequent early or late decannulation. 170 records were retrieved of which 15.8% underwent ...

Tracheostomy directly exposes the lower respiratory tract to the exogenous bacteria increasing the risk of colonization of lower respiratory tract. The present study was done in patients who underwent tracheostomy and the study compares bacterial flora of oropharnyx and lower respiratory tract during tracheostomy with that of the bacterial flora of the lower respiratory tract during the first t...

Objectives: The optimal timing for tracheostomy after cardiac surgery in patients undergoing prolonged ventilation is controversial. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of tracheostomy timing on shortand long-term mortality of these patients. Design: Retrospective study of prospectively collected data. Setting: Cardiac surgical intensive care unit (ICU) in a tertiary-care, university...

features that appear frequently in intubated patients who may require later tracheostomy. Ventilator-associated pneumonia, low GCS, and the need for reintubation are possible risk factors for tracheostomy. Optimal time for tracheostomy varies with age and underlying pathology that lead to the need for it. The majority of the patients can be discharged from PICU post-tracheostomy; however, the m...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES To assess the incidence of tracheostomy in patients submitted to mechanic ventilation (MV); to compare the length of stay (LOS), duration of MV, APACHE II and mortality among patients submitted to tracheostomy, according to the moment of its application (early or late). METHODS A retrospective observation study type cohort was done from April thru October 2005 includ...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS After concurrent chemoradiation for head and neck squamous cell cancer, patients with laryngeal incompetence may not recover function. We assessed variables predicting tracheostomy dependence as a measure of poor laryngeal function after chemoradiation. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective METHODS Analysis of 109 patients treated with chemoradiation for locoregionally advanced l...

For decades, the standard technique for tracheostomy was the open, surgical technique. However, during the past 20 years, the use of percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy has been increased and shown to be a feasible and safe procedure in critically ill patients. The purpose of this report is to review the percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy technique, describe the role of bronchoscopy as g...

Tracheostomy is a commonly performed intervention with several benefits in the treatment of patients with chronic respiratory failure. Percutaneous dilational tracheostomy techniques have allowed bedside tracheostomy placement in the modern intensive care unit. Percutaneous dilational tracheostomy can be safely performed by interventional pulmonologists, medical intensive care physicians, and s...