ABSTRACT
Authors measured various portions of upper airway by use of new radiologic lateral view of chest in order to study the mean values of upper airway in normal Korean adults (n=100). The length between anterior teeth and the top of the epiglottis was 8.9+/-0.6 cm in male and 8.5+/-0.6 cm in female. The length beteen anterior teeth and the mid portion of trachea was 20.4 +/-0.7 cm in male and 18.8+/-0.8 cm in female. The length between anterior teeth and carina was 27.1+/-0.9 cm in male and 25.3+/-0.9 cm in female, while the length of trachea was 13.3+/-0.7 cm in male and 12.9+/-0.5 cm in female. The vocal cord and the carina were usually located at the level of the 5th cervicl and the 5th thoracic vertebra, respectively, in both sexes. This study also showed that the central portion of the trachea was located at the level of the lower border of the medial end of clavicle.