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World J Virol. Mar 25, 2026; 15(1): 118274
Published online Mar 25, 2026. doi: 10.5501/wjv.v15.i1.118274
Published online Mar 25, 2026. doi: 10.5501/wjv.v15.i1.118274
Evolution of tracheostomy practices after the COVID-19 pandemic: The fast lane in the post-COVID era
Stephens Griner, Sabrina Elliott, Dimitrios Giannis, Camille Mai-Phuong Tran Quang, Kellyann Inniss, Martine A Louis, Nageswara R Mandava, Department of Surgery, Flushing Hospital Medical Center, MediSys Health Network, Flushing, Queens, NY 11355, United States
Andrew Miele, Department of Research, Education and Innovation, MediSys Health Network, Flushing, Queens, NY 11355, United States
Author contributions: Griner S and Louis MA conceptualized and designed the study, supervised, and made critical revisions; Elliott S, Giannis D, Quang CMPT, Inniss K, and Miele A conducted the extraction, analysis, and interpretation of data, Griner S, Giannis D, Louis MA, and Mandava NR drafted the original manuscript; and all authors read and agreed to the submitted version of the manuscript.
Institutional review board statement: This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Flushing Hospital Medical Center, approval No. 2234080-1.
Informed consent statement: Informed consent was waived for this retrospective study of de-identified data.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement-checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: The data of this study are included in the article and summarized in tables. Further requests can be directed to the authors.
Corresponding author: Dimitrios Giannis, MD, PhD, Department of Surgery, Flushing Hospital Medical Center, MediSys Health Network, 4500 Parsons Blvd, Flushing, Queens, NY 11355, United States. dimitrisgiannhs@gmail.com
Received: December 28, 2025
Revised: February 5, 2026
Accepted: March 9, 2026
Published online: March 25, 2026
Processing time: 75 Days and 13 Hours
Revised: February 5, 2026
Accepted: March 9, 2026
Published online: March 25, 2026
Processing time: 75 Days and 13 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This retrospective cohort study demonstrates a sustained post-coronavirus disease 2019 shift toward earlier tracheostomy and earlier palliative and surgical consultation in critically ill patients, without associated mortality benefit. These findings highlight how adaptations during the pandemic have reshaped airway management practices and emphasize the importance of interdisciplinary, goal-concordant decision-making.