Tracheostomy During COVID-19 Pandemic

To the Editor Tay et al should be complimented on their Viewpoint “Surgical Considerations for Tracheostomy During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lessons Learned From the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Outbreak” highlighting preoperative and perioperative recommendations for tracheostomy during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The authors searched the literature for tracheostomies performed during the previous outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), finding 3 case series and 2 case reports (23 procedures). Lessons learned from those experiences were summarized into 5 points. The need for adequate personal protective equipment in performing surgery, the site to perform surgery to lessen transport of infected patients, the precautions to reduce time of exposure to infective secretions, the establishment of experienced teams, and the caution in postprocedure waste disposal were discussed and translated to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: JAMA Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery - Category: ENT & OMF Source Type: research