ABSTRACT
To compare proseal laryngeal mask airway [PLMA] with an endotracheal tube [ET] for airway safety, maintained ease of insertion, and hemodynamic stability in pediatric strabismus surgery [PSS]. This prospective-randomized clinical study was carried out in the Department of Anesthesiology, Faculty of Medicine, Gaziantep University, Turkey between April 2008 and July 2009. Eighty American Society of Anesthesiology [ASA] I-II children, weight 10-30 kg, aged between 1-12 years undergoing PSS were selected. The anesthesia was induced with 8% sevoflurane, 50% nitrous oxide/oxygen mixture, and a neuromuscular blockade with 0.5 mg/kg atracurium in both groups. After a sufficient dosage of anesthesia, the patients were randomized into 2 groups [Group P: PLMA, n= 40, Group T: ET, n=40] and an airway management device; either a PLMA or ET was inserted. The number of placement attempts, placement success or failure, success or failure of a gastric suction tube placement during the procedures and perioperative complications were assessed. Thirty-eight patients [95%] in the PLMA group, 39 [97.5%] patients in the ET group were successfully placed with a PLMA and ET on the first attempt [p>0.05]. There were no statistically significant differences in the hemodynamic parameters, end-tidal carbon dioxide, and complications. This study revealed that PLMA may offer an alternative airway to ET wherein positive pressure ventilation was the preferred choice for children undergoing PSS