Surgical airway management in the intensive care unit

Tracheostomy is one of the most common surgical procedures performed on critically ill and injured patients in the United States today. Despite decades of experience among surgeons, there is still controversy over specific indications, techniques, and timing of performing the surgical airway New techniques, such as percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy and minitracheostomy, have challenged critical care physicians to tailor operative airway methods to each individual patient. Older procedures, such as cricrothyroidotomy, have found a new niche in the intensive care unit. These new techniques, along with new ways to perform traditional tracheostomies, have made the practice of operative airway management dynamic and controversial.