BACKGROUND Tracheostomy remains a very important life saving surgical procedure worldwide and particularly in our environment where patients present late in upper airway obstruction. Little work has been done on this subject in our environment and therefore it was necessary to conduct this study to describe our own experiences with tracheostomy, outlining the common indications and outcome of t...

The authors report the case of a 4-year boy who required anaesthetic and surgical care during LASER excision of laryngeal papillomatosis. He presented with hoarseness and stridor and underwent emergency tracheostomy after confirmation of laryngeal papillomas on CT scan. He required LASER treatment under general anaesthesia with a requirement of paediatric LASER-safe endotracheal tube but unfort...

INTRODUCTION A review of the available literature has shown that the indications, epidemiology, and complications for tracheostomies are changing, and that no definite guidelines have been established. In the 1970s, the most common indication for tracheostomies in children was acute inflammatory airway obstruction. Modern neonatal intensive care units (ICU) have turned long-term intubation into...

Abstract Introduction Tracheostomy decannulation is an extremely important part of tracheostomy care in paediatric patients. Due to the increased risk morbidity1 (bleeding, respiratory infection, airway plugging, accidental decannulation) and mortality2 (0.5-3.6%) associated with prolonged tracheostomies, it strongly advised decannulate patient as soon underlying cause for placement corrected o...

Indication for pediatric tracheostomy has changed. Upper airway obstruction secondary to infectious disorders is no longer the commonest indication. The aim of this study was to establish data on indications, outcome and complications of pediatric tracheostomy. A retrospective analysis of pediatric tracheostomies carried out between March 2002 to March 2004 was done. Eighteen patients were iden...