Introduction: Tracheostomy is commonly performed for upper airway obstruction, prolonged mechanical ventilation and tracheo-bronchial toileting. Pediatric tracheostomy differs from adult tracheostomy in terms of surgical procedure, post-operative care and recovery. The tracheostomized patients may either be decannulated, discharged with tube-in-situ or the patient may expire. The aim of this study was to find out the prevalence of tracheostomy in patients admitted to the Pediatric intensive care unit of a tertiary care centre.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was performed among children admitted to the Pediatric intensive care unit of a tertiary care centre from 1 May 2017 to 31 August 2022 after obtaining ethical approval from the Institutional Review Committee. A convenience sampling method was used. The point estimate was calculated at 95% Confidence Interval.
Results: Among 1472 patients, tracheostomy was done in 65 (4.41%) (3.37-5.47, 95% Confidence Interval). A total of 33 (50.76%) underwent tracheostomy for prolonged ventilation whereas 32 (49.23%) were tracheostomized for airway obstruction. Among them, 41 (63.07%) patients were successfully decannulated, 9 (13.84%) were discharged with tracheostomy tubes in situ whereas 15 (23.07%) patients deceased. The most common complication was tracheostomy tube blockage reported in 5 (7.69%).
Conclusions: The prevalence of tracheostomy among the children of the pediatric intensive care unit was found to be lower than in other studies.
Keywords: mechanical ventilation; complication; pediatric; tracheostomy.