Tracheostomy to Eliminate Upper Airway Obstruction in Children

Respiratory distress and stridor due to upper respiratory tract infections are among the top reasons pediatric patients visit the emergency department. The clinical course and severity of symptoms related to respiratory tract infections can vary significantly in patients presenting to the emergency department. It ranges from mild, self-limited to life-threatening airway obstruction. For this reason, emergency physicians need to evaluate children with respiratory distress originating from the upper respiratory tract with a multidisciplinary approach to maintain the patency and continuity of the airway. In the pediatric emergency department, retropharyngeal abscess, characterized by retropharyngeal space infection with rapidly worsening clinical findings and aggravation by respiratory distress, is a true airway emergency. The basic approach in these patients is to plan surgical drainage without delay and ensure airway patency. Tracheotomy should primarily be considered among the options. The main goal in the treatment of diseases that cause upper airway obstruction caused by infection is to ensure the continuity of the airway. Airway obstruction is life-threatening and requires urgent intervention.