Intubating LMA as an adjunct for emergency intra-operative airway control

Intubating laryngeal mask airway [ILMA] has been shown as a useful airway management device in various situations such as prehospital settings and difficult intubations. The option to intubate without the use of a laryngoscope is an advantage when laryngoscopy is difficult. This report describes an instance where the use of ILMA helped achieve successful intubation intraoperatively when there was loss of airway control

Unusual case of guide wire traverse of endotracheal tube cuff during percutaneous tracheostomy

Although the use of endotracheal tube for airway control during percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy provides better airway seal, it also carries the risk of damage to cuff from the needle. This report highlights a case where the guide wire entered the trachea after traversing the cuff without associated air leak. Use of a [tug test] allowed detection of the cuff impalement by the guide wire

Diametrical differences between blue-rhino kit loading dilators and percutaneous tracheostomy tubes

Percutaneous tracheostomy is a common procedure in intensive care unit. The different diameters of loading dilators in the standard Blue Rhino percutaneous tracheostomy kit and available tracheostomy tubes means that difficulties may be encountered during the procedure due to formation of a 'step' between the tube and the loading dilator. This increases the potential for complications and might add to the cost. In order to find out the best combination of tracheostomy tubes and loading dilators, this study compared the various tracheostomy tubes. Size 8 of all tracheostomy tubes had the best fit when used with specific loading dilators in the standard Blue Rhino Kit. It is recommended that a size 8-tracheostomy tube be chosen with the standard Blue Rhino technique for percutaneous tracheostomy. If a smaller tube is deemed necessary, a size 7 will provide a good fit