We analyze the changes in water and sediment conditions in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River in recent years based on the measured data.It is concluded that the flood season drought of 2022 can have adverse effects on waterway maintenance.By summarizing the practice of waterway maintenance and dredging in recent years，we point out that waterway maintenance in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River mainly has the following problems.The adverse evolution trend of key shoals is getting worse；the number of shoals obstructing navigation is increasing；the time of obstructing navigation and the timing for maintenance and dredging are highly concentrated；the organization for maintenance and dredging is difficult.To deal with the problem of concentrated shallowing in multiple channels under possible adverse hydrological conditions，we propose to strengthen the medium and long-term water regime forecasting，carry out the accurate design of key shoals，and adopt a comprehensive maintenance mode that combines waterway maintenance and dredging with the maintenance of waterway regulation structures，which can provide a reference for future waterway maintenance and regulation.