BACKGROUND Tracheostomy facilitates respiratory care and the process of weaning from mechanical ventilatory support. AIMS To compare the complications found in percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy (PDT) and surgical tracheostomy (ST) techniques. METHODS This was a prospective randomized study to evaluate the complications of PDT and ST procedures in patients admitted to ICU unit of a teac...

T racheostomy is one of the oldest surgical procedures reported in ancient medicine books. It became widely used in the 19th century during the diphtheria epidemics in Europe, and then in the 20th century following a series of devastating poliomyelitis epidemics in the 1950s [1–3]. Around the turn of the 20th century, JACKSON [4] standardised the indications for tracheostomy, the technique itse...

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...

As the number of critically ill patients requiring tracheotomy for prolonged ventilation has increased, the demand for a procedural alternative to the surgical tracheostomy (ST) has also emerged. Since its introduction, percutaneous dilatational tracheostomies (PDT) have gained increasing popularity. The most commonly cited advantages are the ease of the familiar technique and the ability to pe...

Percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy is a common procedure in intensive care. This guideline from the Danish Society of Intensive Care Medicine (DSIT) and the Danish Society of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (DASAIM) describes indications and contraindications, timing, complications compared to surgical tracheostomy, anaesthesia and technique, decannulation strategy, as well as tr...

We describe a case series of seven patients that demonstrates the usefulness of rigid bronchoscopy in percutaneous tracheostomy. The technique was used in selected patients who had a previous tracheostomy, a difficult airway, high risk of bleeding, or a tracheal stent in place.

The value of tracheostomy was assessed for each patient in relation to the subsequent progress of the underlying disease, to complications of the tracheostomy, and to mortality. Three grades of value were distinguished: (1) the patient would have died had tracheostomy not been performed-211 (54%); (2) the tracheostomy was of definite value to the patient and contributed materially to recovery, ...