Tracheitis Sicca

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Abstract
TRACHEITIS sicca is a hazardous state that complicates the well-being of postlaryngectomy patients, as well as others with a tracheostomy tube, especially during the cold winters experienced in northern climates. Crusting, ropy secretions and, in the acutely severe cases, an eroded and bleeding tracheal mucosa are diagnostic. These create a vicious circle in which the patient's coughing produces dyspnea, the dyspnea accentuates the drying process, and the patient is left fighting for a comfortable airway day and night.The onset seems independent of the time elapsed since tracheostomy, and the condition is encountered two days to five years postoperatively. The . . .