Comparison of students' learning curves between Macintosh laryngoscope and Airtraq laryngoscope in endotracheal intubation / 中华医学教育探索杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To compare medical students' learning curve between Macintosh laryngoscope and optical laryngoscope in endotracheal intubation and to decide which one is more suitable for novice personnel.Methods Totally 26 interns after being trained by experienced anesthesiologists were enrolled in this study.They performed intubation on 6 patients by using both Macintosh laryngoscope and optical laryngoscope ( each laryngoscope for 3 patients) under the supervision of experienced anesthesiologists.The sequence of laryngoscope was determined by computer-generated random number list.Results Totally 149 patients who were ready to receive surgery under general anesthesia were enrolled in this randomized crossover controlled study.Duration of intubation was significantly shorter in Airtraq group (78 -± 33 ) s than in Macintosh group (114 ± 32) s,P ＜ 0.001.Intubation success rate was significantly higher in Airtraq group than in Macintosh group ( 87.8％ vs.66.7％,P ＜ 0.05 ).Conclusions With the advantages of rapid learning curve,higher intubation success rate and shorter intubation duration,Airtraq laryngoscope is easier to master for novice personnel.