• Kazufumi Obata, Ryo Miyata, Keisuke Yamamoto, Naofumi Byn-Ya, Takehiko Kasai, Hiroyuki Inoue, Eichi Narimatsu, and Kenichi Takano.
• Department of Otolaryngology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.
• In Vivo. 2020 Nov 1; 34 (6): 3747-3751.

Background/AimTracheostomy performed on patients with Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may lead to the infection of operators and medical staff. To date, there are no established methods of infection control. The aim of this study was to provide helpful and useful information regarding tracheostomy during the COVID-19 pandemic.Patients And MethodsWe performed a retrospective analysis on 12 patients with severe COVID-19 who were intubated and underwent tracheostomy in our hospital.ResultsPercutaneous tracheostomy was performed in eight cases, and open tracheostomy was performed in four cases. Open tracheostomy in the operating room was performed under a negative pressure closed-space system using a surgical drape to prevent aerosolization.ConclusionOur experience suggests that bedside percutaneous tracheostomy may be a useful option in patients with COVID-19. In cases where percutaneous tracheostomy is anticipated to be difficult, open tracheostomy using a negative pressure closure may be useful in preventing aerosolization and reducing the risk of infection of healthcare workers.Copyright© 2020, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.

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