Suctioning
Definition
The purpose of suctioning the tracheostomy is to maintain a patent airway by removing secretions that the child is unable to cough out of the tracheostomy tube. It is the most frequently performed procedure on children with tracheostomies.
- Equipment needed for suctioning
- suction machine capable of running on a battery
- appropriate sized catheters
- clean gloves
- clean container to hold sterile water or saline
- sterile water or saline to rinse suction catheter
- manual resuscitation device and mask
- How to suction
- Sterile suctioning: single catheter use, sterile gloves
- Clean suctioning: reuse catheter, clean gloves
- Pre-measure catheter: suction only to end of tracheostomy tube
- Applying suction: machine set at the correct pressure
- Assess secretions
- Color
- Normal color clear or white.
- Yellow tinged in the morning.
- Yellow or green or brown) may indicate viral or bacterial infection.
- Blood tinged may be from suctioning too deep, a granuloma, pneumonia or a trach tube change.
- Consistency
- Ranges from thin to thick
- Thicker secretions may be due to inadequate humidification, infection or dehydration.
- Amount
- Ranges from scant to copious.
- Amount will increase with an infection.
- Odor
- Pseudomonas bacteria smells like dirty socks.
- An odor around the trach tube can be caused by the colonized bacteria.
- Can cause significant complications.
- Microatelectasis - collapse of the small alveoli.
- Hypoxia - lack of oxygen in the blood.
- Granuloma - a mass or nodule of chronically inflamed tissue.
- Bleeding from the trachea.
- Know the details about the child such as reason for tracheostomy, size of tracheostomy tube and usual frequency of suctioning for the child.
- Use of the approved suction techniques can prevent most complications.