Respiratory Rehabilitation and Decannulation in Adults with Prolonged Mechanical Ventilation After Tracheostomy: A Narrative Review

Background: Patients with prolonged mechanical ventilation (PMV) frequently require tracheostomy due to failure to wean, yet the pathway from ventilator dependence to successful decannulation remains complex and poorly standardised. Comprehensive respiratory rehabilitation is recognised as a core strategy for improving decannulation outcomes, but no unified, evidence-based guidelines currently exist for this population. This review addresses that gap by synthesising current evidence on respiratory rehabilitation and decannulation strategies for tracheostomized PMV patients. Methods: A narrative review was conducted through a systematic search of PubMed/MEDLINE covering publications indexed from May 2019 to February 2026, supplemented by targeted searches of Embase and the Cochrane Library. The search combined free-text keywords and Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms across eight search string combinations. Following title and abstract screening of 830 deduplicated records, 51 studies met eligibility criteria and were included in the final narrative synthesis. Results: Six core rehabilitation intervention domains were identified: respiratory muscle training, physical rehabilitation and nutritional optimisation, sedation and delirium management, speaking valve use, airway complication management, and ventilator mode optimisation. High-intensity inspiratory muscle training at no less than 50% of maximal inspiratory pressure is currently supported by the strongest available evidence among the interventions reviewed, although this threshold derives primarily from general ICU populations and has not been specifically validated in heterogeneous tracheostomized PMV cohorts. Decannulation readiness assessment may benefit from evaluating five core domains—neurological readiness, secretion management capacity (suctioning ≤ 4 times/24 h), cough efficacy (peak cough flow > 160 L/min), safe swallowing confirmed by instrumental assessment, and upper airway patency confirmed by fiberoptic bronchoscopy—using a structured multidisciplinary framework. Conclusions: Successful decannulation in tracheostomized PMV patients requires integration of evidence-based rehabilitation interventions, structured multidisciplinary assessment, and a patient-centred outcome framework that extends beyond physiological endpoints to encompass voice restoration, psychological well-being, and social reintegration. Significant evidence gaps remain—particularly for expiratory muscle training, population-specific decannulation protocols, and adapted rehabilitation models for resource-limited settings—representing priority areas for future research.