Abstract

Background: Tracheostomy is a lifesaving procedure in infants and children. However, it increases the morbidity and mortality rates in pediatric population twice than those of adults.
Objective: To unveil some newer and least studied facts in areas such as indication of pediatric tracheostomy, appropriate time to perform it, and complications arising during and after the procedure and their modes of managements.
Materials and Methods: This prospective study was carried out for over two-and-a-half year period. A total of 45 patients were enrolled from various departments such as otorhinolaryngology, surgery, and pediatrics. Various details of all partic- ipants such as demographic data, detailed history of current disease, and detailed information about tracheostomy and complications were recorded. Result: The most commmon age group was younger than 2 years (33%), followed by 2–4 years (16%) and 4–6 years (16%). Obstruction was the most common indication in our study (88%), followed by lifesaving procedure (7%), posthead injury (3%), and congenital anomaly (2%). Of the 45 participants, 47% showed tetanus and 38% diphtheria. Tetanus was more common in boys (15 of 24), while diphtheria was more common in girls (11 of 21). Frequency of complications was very high (80%) among all tracheostomy patients, with the highest in immediate postoperative period (52.72%). Conclusion: We conclude from the study that the anatomy of pediatric trachea is different from that of adult trachea. The higher incidence of tracheostomy in pediatric patients probably relates to a higher incidence of infection and vulner- ability of pediatric trachea to edema and inflammation. Maximum number of tracheostomies is performed owing to upper respiratory infections such as tetanus and diphtheria.