Laryngeal mask airway bougie ultrasonography guided intubation in a morbidly obese patient with difficult airway
10.5847/wjem.j.1920-8642.2023.050
- Author:
Rachana Bhat
1
Author Information
1. Department of Emergency Medicine, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal 576104, India
- Publication Type:Other Types
- Keywords:
Airway management
- From:
World Journal of Emergency Medicine
2023;14(3):241-243
- CountryChina
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Airway management of morbidly obese patients is challenging due to inherent anatomical and physiological variations.[1] The frequent association of compromised hemodynamics, hypoxemia, or acidosis in an emergency department (ED) setting adds to the difficulty of the procedure. Rapid airway management position (RAMP), awake fiber-optic guided intubation, use of intubating laryngeal mask airway (ILMA), and video-laryngoscope are a few techniques that have been described to tackle difficult airways in these patients.[2] Studies have shown that the availability of fiber-optic scopes (3%-60%), video-laryngoscopes (39%-88%), and laryngeal mask airways (LMA) (65%-83%) varies in different ED settings.[3,4] Furthermore, a lack of adequate training and the need for time-bound resuscitation make implementation of the above techniques challenging. Supraglottic airway devices (SADs) are potential rescue airway devices with a fast-learning curve. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is an easily available, convenient adjunct for airway management in emergency and critical care settings. Various studies have shown the utility of POCUS in the confirmation of correct endotracheal tube placement in real time.[5,6]
