Early versus late tracheotomy in ICU patients: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to quantitatively analyze the available randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and investigate whether early tracheotomy can improve clinical endpoints compared with late tracheotomy in critically ill patients undergoing mechanical ventilation. METHODS: The electronic databases of PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane library were systematically searched in August 2019. The investigated outcomes were calculated using relative risks (RRs) and standardized mean differences (SMDs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) through the random-effects model for categories and continuous data, respectively. RESULTS: The electronic searches yielded 2289 records, including 15 RCTs comprising a total of 3003 patients and found to be relevant for the final quantitative analysis. The summary RRs that indicated early versus late tracheotomy were not associated with the risk of short-term mortality (RR: 0.87; 95% CI: 0.74–1.03; P = .114) and ventilator-associated pneumonia (RR: 0.90; 95% CI: 0.78–1.04; P = .156). Moreover, early tracheotomy was associated with shorter intensive care unit (ICU) stay (SMD: –1.81; 95% CI: –2.64 to –0.99; P < .001) and mechanical ventilation duration (SMD: –1.17; 95% CI: –2.10 to –0.24; P = .014). Finally, no significant difference was observed between early and late tracheotomy for hospital stay (SMD: –0.42; 95% CI: –1.36–0.52; P = .377). CONCLUSIONS: The present meta-analysis suggests that early tracheotomy can reduce the length of ICU stay and mechanical ventilation duration, but the timing of the tracheotomy was not associated with the short-term clinical endpoints in critically ill patients undergoing mechanical ventilation.