[Percutaneous tracheostomy in intensive care medicine - Update 2012]

Percutaneous tracheostomy has become an established procedure in airway management of critically ill patients. It offers advantages over prolonged tracheal intubation. To date, there is no evidence of the optimal timing of the procedure. The Ciaglia Blue Rhino technique is the most common technique and, as any other techniques of percutaneous tracheostomy, is performed under general anaesthesia and with continuous bronchoscopic control. The recently introduced Ciaglia Blue Dolphin technique is based on radial dilatation with a fluid-filled high pressure balloon. Provided that specific contraindications are observed (e.g. difficult tracheal intubation, inability to identify anatomic landmarks, severe coagulopathy etc.), all techniques have low complication rates. The use of ultrasound may further enhance perioperative safety. Finally it must be noted that percutaneous tracheostomy is an elective procedure that requires informed consent from the patient or an attorney of law.