Anesthesia and Pain Medicine  2011;6(1):63-66

Delayed hypoxemia due to endobronchial intubation as a result of positioning the patient under general anesthesia: A case report.

Saecheol OH 1 ; Ji Hyun CHUNG ; Sang Mook LEE ; Kyu Don CHUNG ; Hyun Sook CHO ; Yun Joung HAN ; Byunggil KANG

Affiliations

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Keywords

Endobronchial intubation; Hypoxemia; Neck flexion; Surgical position

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

English

Abstract

Undetected endobronchial intubation during general anesthesia can cause serious complications. However, it is very difficult to determine the exact location of the endotracheal tube when it is positioned in the middle of the trachea. We experienced a patient who showed hypoxia caused by the positioning of the endobronchial tube. We think that the tube might have been advanced from the upper part of the carina into the right main bronchus while the neck was being flexed by the neurosurgeon for achieving better surgical exposure.