Ultrasound-guided sphenopalatine ganglion block for effective analgesia during awake fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Awake fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation (AFNI) is the preferred airway management strategy for patients with difficult airways. However, this procedure can cause significant physical and psychological distress. This case report explores the application of a sphenopalatine ganglion (SPG) block as an alternative analgesic modality to mitigate the discomfort associated with AFNI. CASE SUMMARY: A 63-year-old female with a history of right maxillary osteosarcoma underwent craniotomy for a suspected malignant brain lesion. The patient's medical history included prior surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy, resulting in significant jaw impairment and limited neck mobility. Considering the anticipated airway challenges, AFNI was planned. A SPG block was performed under real-time ultrasound guidance, providing effective analgesia during nasotracheal intubation. CONCLUSION: The SPG block represents a promising analgesic approach in AFNI, offering potential benefits in alleviating pain involving the nasal and nasopharyngeal regions as well as improving patient cooperation.

Risk factors affecting the difficulty of fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation.

BACKGROUND: The success rate of intubation under direct laryngoscopy is greatly influenced by laryngoscopic grade using the Cormack-Lehane classification. However, it is not known whether grade under direct laryngoscopy can also affects the success rate of nasotracheal intubation using a fiberoptic bronchoscpe, so this study investigated the same. In addition, we investigated other factors that influence the success rate of fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation (FNI). METHODS: FNI was performed by 18 anesthesiology residents under general anesthesia in patients over 15 years of age who underwent elective oral and maxillofacial operations. In all patients, the Mallampati grade was measured. Laryngeal view grade under direct laryngoscopy, and the degree of secretion and bleeding in the oral cavity was measured and divided into 3 grades. The time required for successful FNI was measured. If the intubation time was > 5 minutes, it was evaluated as a failure and the airway was managed by another method. The failure rate was evaluated using appropriate statistical method. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and area under the curve (AUC) were also measured. RESULTS: A total of 650 patients were included in the study, and the failure rate of FNI was 4.5%. The patient's sex, age, height, weight, Mallampati, and laryngoscopic view grade did not affect the success rate of FNI (P > 0.05). BMI, the number of FNI performed by residents (P = 0.03), secretion (P < 0.001), and bleeding (P < 0.001) grades influenced the success rate. The AUCs of bleeding and secretion were 0.864 and 0.798, respectively, but the AUC of BMI, the number of FNI performed by residents, Mallampati, and laryngoscopic view grade were 0.527, 0.616, 0.614, and 0.544, respectively. CONCLUSION: Unlike in intubation under direct laryngoscopy, in the case of FNI, oral secretion and nasal bleeding had a significant effect on FNI difficulty than Mallampati grade or Laryngeal view grade.

Awake fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation for patients with difficult airway.

Awake fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation is a useful technique, especially in patients with airway obstruction. It must not only provide sufficient anesthesia, but also maintain spontaneous breathing. We introduce a method to achieve this using a small dose of fentanyl and midazolam in combination with topical anesthesia. The cases of 2 patients (1 male, 1 female) who underwent oral maxillofacial surgery are reported. They received 50 µg of fentanyl 2-3 times (total 2.2-2.3 µg/kg) at intervals of approximately 2 min. Oxygen was administered via a mask at 6 L/min, and 0.5 mg of midazolam was administered 1-4 times (total 0.02-0.05 mg/kg) at intervals of approximately 2 min. A tracheal tube was inserted through the nasal cavity after topical anesthesia was applied to the epiglottis, vocal cords, and into the trachea through the fiberscope channel. All patients were successfully intubated. This is a useful and safe method for awake fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation.

Awake fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation for patients with difficult airway

Awake fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation is a useful technique, especially in patients with airway obstruction. It must not only provide sufficient anesthesia, but also maintain spontaneous breathing. We introduce a method to achieve this using a small dose of fentanyl and midazolam in combination with topical anesthesia. The cases of 2 patients (1 male, 1 female) who underwent oral maxillofacial surgery are reported. They received 50 µg of fentanyl 2–3 times (total 2.2–2.3 µg/kg) at intervals of approximately 2 min. Oxygen was administered via a mask at 6 L/min, and 0.5 mg of midazolam was administered 1–4 times (total 0.02–0.05 mg/kg) at intervals of approximately 2 min. A tracheal tube was inserted through the nasal cavity after topical anesthesia was applied to the epiglottis, vocal cords, and into the trachea through the fiberscope channel. All patients were successfully intubated. This is a useful and safe method for awake fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation.

Case report of Pierre Robin sequence with severe upper airway obstruction who was rescued by fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation.

BACKGROUND: Pierre Robin sequence (PRS) refers to the association of micrognathia, glossoptosis, and airway obstruction. Cases with severe dyspnea due to upper airway obstruction immediately after birth are very rare. We here report two cases with PRS who developed severe dyspnea due to morphological abnormality immediately after birth and were rescued by fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient in case 1 had micrognathia and cleft palate, and his tongue protruded into the nasal cavity via a cleft palate. His invaginated tongue was considered an extreme type of glossoptosis and he was diagnosed as Pierre Robin sequence. The patient in case 2 also had micrognathia and cleft palate same as case 1 and accompanied some anomalad. Her chromosome analysis confirmed a diagnosis of 1p36 deletion syndrome and she diagnosed as 1p36 deletion syndrome complicated with Pierre Robin sequence. In both cases, tongue protruded into the nasal cavity via a cleft palate occupied pharynx and nasal cavity, resulting in severe dyspnea. Only the backside of the tongue was visible by laryngoscopy and oropharyngeal intubation was impossible. Therefore, fiberoptic nasotracheal intubation was done to secure the airway for resuscitation. CONCLUSION: We conclude that extreme type of glossoptosis in PRS concludes tongue invaginated into nasal cavity which have not reported before and that such cases require resuscitation by fiberoptic intubation immediately after birth. As such, neonatologists should obtain the skill of fiberoptic intubation.

Effective removal of epistaxis during nasotracheal intubation utilizing a fiberoptic scope in a difficult airway: A case report / 대한마취과학회지

Nasal bleeding related to nasal trauma is the most common complication of nasotracheal intubation with a fiberoptic scope. When nasotracheal intubation with a fiberoptic scope is performed, profuse bleeding from the nasal cavity makes it difficult to handle a fiberoptic scope and may cause a hypoxemia. So when nasal bleeding occurs, it is important to suction the nasal cavity for easy handling of a fiberoptic scope. But, it may be difficult to suction in a nasal cavity with a fiberoptic suction port only. We report a patient with nasal bleeding following nasotracheal intubation with a fiberoptic scope because of articular trismus, and successful nasotracheal intubation utilizing a fiberoptic scope by suctioning with an extra suction apparatus.

Effective removal of epistaxis during nasotracheal intubation utilizing a fiberoptic scope in a difficult airway: A case report / 대한마취과학회지

Nasal bleeding related to nasal trauma is the most common complication of nasotracheal intubation with a fiberoptic scope. When nasotracheal intubation with a fiberoptic scope is performed, profuse bleeding from the nasal cavity makes it difficult to handle a fiberoptic scope and may cause a hypoxemia. So when nasal bleeding occurs, it is important to suction the nasal cavity for easy handling of a fiberoptic scope. But, it may be difficult to suction in a nasal cavity with a fiberoptic suction port only. We report a patient with nasal bleeding following nasotracheal intubation with a fiberoptic scope because of articular trismus, and successful nasotracheal intubation utilizing a fiberoptic scope by suctioning with an extra suction apparatus.

The Chanages of Blood Pressure , Heart Rate and Cardiac Output During Awake Fiberoptic Nasotracheal and Orotracheal Intubation / 대한마취과학회지

To evaluate the clinical usefulness of fiberoptic intubation, we recorded the changes of arterial pressure, heart rate and cardiac output during fiberoptic nasotracheal and orotracheal intubation, while measuring the time taken for the intubation procedure. Anesthesia of pharynx was achieved by oral gargling of 10 ml of 4% lidocaine, and for nasotracheal intubation, nasal mucosa was anesthetized by application of 4% cocaine usirig cotton-tipped swabs. Anesthesia of the larynx and trachea was done by superior laryngeal nerve block with 6 ml of 2% lidocaine, and translaryngeal injection with 4% lidocaine by cricothyroid membrane puncture. After sedation with intravenous diazepam and fentanyl, awake fiberoptic (n=32) or orotracheal intubation (n=18) was performed on the patients (ASA class 1 or 2) in whom difficult intubation was expected. Mean arterial pressure, heart rate and cardiac output did not change significantly during intubation procedure, nor were these values significantly different between nasotracheal and orotracheal intubation group. The time taken by intubation procedure were compared, and there was no significant difference between two groups. In postoperative interviews, a few (3/28) patients complained discom-forts. It could be concluded that under approapriate anesthesia and sedation, awake fiberoptic nasotracheal or orotracheal intubation is a safe and useful approach producing minimal cardiovascular changes and discomforts.