PEFR IN DECANNULATION OF TRACHEOSTOMIZED PATIENTS

*Dr. Tanvir Hussain, Dr. Dakheelallah Almutairi, Dr. Talal Alandejani, Dr. Hadi Al-Hakami and Dr. Mohammad Al Garni

ABSTRACT

Introduction: The weaning of tracheostomized patients off their mechanical ventilation dependency through decannulation is often a fundamental procedure. However, it is a common occurrence for a decannulation procedure to fail. As much as there are various protocols for carrying out decannulation, none of these has been accepted as conventional. Importantly, it is useful to undertake the assessment of particular patient parameters prior to carrying out the process of decannulation. One such assessment is the measurement of the peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR). Objective: The objective of this study was to describe the significance of the PEFR in decannulation of tracheostomized patients. Methods: An experimental approach was carried out in this study involving 50 patients who had been tracheostomized and were due to undergo decannulation at the at King Abdul Aziz medical city in Jeddah. All the 50 patients underwent the highest peak expiratory flow rate measurement using a flow meter before decannulation was carried out. Results: Out of the 50 patients who all luckily yielded normal PEFR values, 47 underwent successful decannulation while only three was decannulation unsuccessful. The findings showed that PEFR is a significant assessment parameter that can be employed in the decannulation of tracheostomized patients. Conclusions: The flow meter is a significant device that can be used to measure PEFR in tracheostomized patients before decannulation can be carried out. Its use in the measurement of PEFR is more likely to grant critical findings that can grant guidance on the extent of success of the decannulation procedure.

Keywords: Tracheostomy; Decannulation; Flow Meter; Weaning; Peak Expiratory Flow Rate.