5. CONCLUSIONS
Children with tracheostomies are at high risk of respiratory tract
infections and are routinely treated with broad spectrum antimicrobials.
Most evidence for antimicrobial use for these patients comes from
retrospective cohort studies; there is no randomised controlled trial
evidence to date. The studies included in our review highlight the
significant variation in antimicrobial usage between centres, including
antimicrobial selection, duration, and administration route. There is an
urgent need for future research to help rationalise antibiotic usage for
this vulnerable patient cohort.