Table 1.
Participant Characteristics
| Characteristic | Median (Range) or Number |
|---|---|
| Children whose caregivers participated in interviews [n=41] | |
| Age, median (range)* | 2.5 years (5 months – 18 years) |
| Boys | 21 |
| Girls | 20 |
| White | 29 |
| Black | 10 |
| Multiracial | 2 |
| Hispanic | 7 |
| Health insurance | |
| Medicaid | 31 |
| Private | 7 |
| Both | 3 |
| Annual household income† | |
| < $20,000 | 17 |
| $20,001 to $40,000 | 12 |
| $40,001 to $80,000 | 11 |
| Missing | 1 |
| Primary diagnostic categories | |
| Prematurity | 6 |
| Anoxic brain injury | 5 |
| Myopathy, muscular dystrophy | 7 |
| Neurological malformations | 4 |
| Lung or heart defects | 4 |
| Genetic conditions | 8 |
| Malignancy | 1 |
| Other | 6 |
| Age at tracheostomy, median (range) | 10 months (4 days – 17 years) |
| Duration of tracheostomy, median (range)§ | 1.5 years (2 months – 5 years) |
| Tracheostomy only | 25 |
| Tracheostomy and chronic mechanical ventilation | 16 |
| Decanulated prior to interview | 8 |
| Decanulated and 2nd tracheostomy | 1 |
| Died prior to interview | 3 |
| Caregivers who participated in 41 interviews [n=56] | |
| Age, median (range) | 36 years (19 years – 53 years) |
| Relationship to the child | |
| Mother | 38 |
| Father | 13 |
| Grandmother | 3 |
| Grandfather | 1 |
| Grandmother figure | 1 |
| Education† | |
| < high school | 9 |
| High school | 16 |
| Some college | 11 |
| College | 17 |
| Missing | 3 |
*
date of birth to date of interview/ date of death
§
date of tracheostomy to date of interview/ date of decanulation/ date of death
†
includes missing values