A comparison of endotracheal intubation and tracheostomy in the management of acute epiglottitis in children in the tropics

In children, acute epiglottitis is rapidly fatal due to airway obstruction by swollen supraglottic structures, but the oedema is short-lived. Therefore, in many centres short-term endotracheal intubation has replaced tracheostomy as the method of choice for relieving the obstruction. We have tried both methods in 15 children over a period of three years under conditions of limited material and human resources. Tracheostomy was found to be safer. It was concluded that it is better to have a live healthy child with a small scar in the neck than a dead child without a scar.