Objectives/Hypothesis: To estimate the number, demographics, and outcomes of pediatric patients who underwent tracheostomy in 2012 and to contrast those outcomes by age, race, and gender.Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: The 2012 Kids Inpatient Database was queried to identify tracheostomy patients using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) procedural codes 311, 3121, and 3129. All patients ≤18 years of age at the time of admission were included and categorized as neonates (≤28 days), infants (>28 days ≤1 year), toddler (1 to 3 years), children (4 to 12 years), adolescents (13 to 17 years), and adults (=18 years). We recorded age, gender, race, insurance status, and zip code of primary residence. We used these variables to contrast the following outcomes: length of stay, total charges, complications of care, and mortality using multiple regression analysis.Results: An estimated 4,424 pediatric tracheostomies occurred during 2012. Fifty-one percent of the patients were ≤3 years old, and 62% were male. Forty-eight percentwere white followed by black (21%), Hispanic (20%), and Asian (3%). The median length of stay was 42 days, and the median total charges were $472,738. The complication rate was 29% and the mortality rate was 8.0%. The length of stay and total charges was predicted by age, with neonates having significantly longer hospitalizations. The complication rate was not associated with age, gender, or ethnicity. However, the mortality rate was associated with younger age.Conclusions: Pediatric tracheostomies are associated with significant hospital utilizations, complications, and mortality. Increased risk of mortality is observed among neonates and infants. Continued study of tracheostomy outcomes among these subsets of the pediatric population are warranted.

Overall, grade C evidence indicates that several methods of initial surgical drainage are equally effective, and the recurrence rate is low. The literature does not specifically address different treatments for children and adults.

Objective To evaluate for differences in time to decannulation and survival rates for pediatric tracheotomy patients based on ventilator status upon discharge. Study Design Retrospective longitudinal cohort study. Methods A single‐institution longitudinal study of pediatric tracheostomy patients was conducted. Patients were categorized based on mechanical ventilation status on discharge and principal reason for tracheostomy. Survival rates were determined using the Kaplan‐Meier method. The Wilcoxon's Rank Sum test and Cox regression analysis evaluated differences in survival times and time to decannulation based on primary indication for tracheotomy and ventilation status. Results Chart review identified 305 patients who required a tracheostomy under the age of 3. The median age at the time of tracheotomy was 5.2 months. The indications for tracheotomy in these patients were airway obstruction in 145 (48%), respiratory failure in 214 (70%), and pulmonary toilet in 10 (3.3%). Seventy‐nine percent of patients were ventilator dependent at discharge. At the conclusion of the study period, 55% of patients were alive with tracheostomy in place, 30% patients were decannulated, and 15% patients were deceased. Patients with ventilator dependence at initial discharge, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, or airway obstruction were more likely to be decannulated. Hispanic patients were less likely to be decannulated. Patients had an equal probability of death regardless of ventilator status at discharge. Conclusions This study demonstrated that the time to decannulation and likelihood of decannulation varies based on the indication for the tracheostomy. The majority of patients with a tracheostomy were not decannulated at the conclusion of this study. Median time to decannulation was 2.5 years for patients with a median death time of 6 months. Level of Evidence 2b Laryngoscope, 130:2319–2324, 2020