title: Pediatric tracheostomy: timing of the first tube change.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  No consensus exists on appropriate timing for the first tracheostomy tube change. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety of early tracheostomy change in the pediatric population.
  
  
  METHODS
  A case series of all children undergoing tracheostomy at a tertiary children's hospital between 2008-2013 was retrospectively reviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 151 children undergoing tracheostomy were identified. The average age was 48.1±66 months and median age was 10 months. The initial tracheostomy tube change occurred on postoperative day 3 (POD 3) in 65 children (43.0%) safely without any complications.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Early tracheostomy tube change was safely performed in a significant portion of this population. Routine tube change on POD 3 in many children could save resources by reducing the length of ICU and hospital stays.
authors.affiliation: Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
authors.forename: Nicholas C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Van Buren
authors.affiliation: Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
authors.forename: Evan R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Narasimhan
authors.affiliation: Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
authors.forename: Jonathan L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Curtis
authors.affiliation: Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
authors.forename: Harlan R
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Muntz
authors.affiliation: Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA jeremy.meier@imail.org.
authors.forename: Jeremy D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Meier
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D020878:Device Removal; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011182:Postoperative Care / Q000379:methods*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D014139:Tracheostomy / Q000295:instrumentation*
keywords: bronchoscopy; granuloma; pediatric; tracheostomy