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Guidelines for Surgical Tracheostomy and Tracheostomy Tube Change During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Review Article.

Suma RadhakrishnanHafees Abdullah PerumballySai SuryaMohammed Shareef Ponneth
Published in: Indian journal of otolaryngology and head and neck surgery : official publication of the Association of Otolaryngologists of India (2020)
The novel corona virus disease (COVID-19) has unfolded into a pandemic and is continuing to propagate at a frightening speed. The aim of this article is to share our protocol for performing a safe surgical tracheostomy in this COVID-19 era. Tracheostomy procedures have a high risk of aerosol generation. To standardize institutional safety measures with tracheostomy, we advocate using a dedicated tracheostomy protocol applicable to all patients including those suspected of having COVID-19. We also did explore the current literature and recommendations for tracheostomy in patients with COVID-19 and studied the previous data from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 1 (SARS-CoV-1), the virus responsible for the SARS outbreak of 2003. We have prepared a protocol for performing a safe surgical tracheotomy in patients affected by COVID-19. Surgeons who might be involved in performing the tracheostomies should become familiar with these guidelines.
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