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Use of ultrasound guidance to improve the safety of percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy: a literature review

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Abstract

Patients in ICUs frequently require tracheostomy for long-term ventilator support, and the percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy (PDT) method is preferred over surgical tracheostomy. The use of ultrasound (US) imaging to guide ICU procedures and interventions has recently emerged as a simple and noninvasive tool. The current evidence regarding the applications of US in PDT is encouraging; however, the exact role of US-guided dilatational tracheostomy (US-PDT) remains poorly defined. In this review, we describe the best available evidence concerning the safety and efficacy of US-PDT and briefly delineate the general principles of US image generation for the airway and of US-PDT procedures.

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Abbreviations

A-M:

Air-mucosal

PDT:

Percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy

RCT:

Randomised controlled trial

US:

Ultrasound

US-PDT:

Ultrasound-guided percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy

USS:

Ultrasound scanning

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Acknowledgements

The work was supported by the College of Medicine Research Centre and the Deanship of Scientific Research, King Saud University Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The images were reproduced with the permission of the Indian Journal of Anaesthesia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Critical Care Medicine, King Khalid University Hospital, College of Medicine, King Saud University, PO Box: 2925 (95), Riyadh, 11461, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

    Mariam Alansari, Hadil Alotair & Mohammed A Elhoseny

  2. Department of Emergency Medicine, King Khalid University Hospital, College of Medicine, King Saud University, PO Box: 2925 (95), Riyadh, 11461, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

    Zohair Al Aseri

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  1. Mariam Alansari
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  2. Hadil Alotair
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  3. Zohair Al Aseri
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Correspondence to Mariam Alansari.

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Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests. The subject of this review has no connections with any company or financial sponsor.

Authors’ contributions

MA conceived of the idea and participated in the literature review, the drafting of the manuscript, and the revision for important intellectual content. HA participated in the literature review and the drafting of the manuscript. ZA participated in the literature review and added a small section and then contributed to the final revision, including the English editing. MAE helped to collect images and participated in the literature review and the drafting of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Alansari, M., Alotair, H., Al Aseri, Z. et al. Use of ultrasound guidance to improve the safety of percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy: a literature review. Crit Care 19, 229 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13054-015-0942-5

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