Airway management is a vital part of anesthesia practices, intensive care units, and emergency departments, and a proper pre-operative assessment can guide clinicians’ plans for securing an airway. Complex airway assessment has recently been at the forefront of anesthesia research, with a substantial increase in annual publications during the last 20 years. In this paper, we provide an extensive overview of the literature connected with pre-operative airway evaluation procedures, ranging from essential bedside physical examinations to advanced imaging techniques such as ultrasound (US), radiography, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We discuss transnasal endoscopy, virtual endoscopy, 3D reconstruction-based technologies, and artificial intelligence (AI) as emerging airway evaluation techniques. The management of distorted upper airways associated with head and neck pathology can be challenging due to the intricate anatomy. We present and discuss the role of recent technological advancements in recognizing difficult airways and assisting clinical decision making while highlighting current limitations and pinpointing future research directions.

Awake fiberoptic tracheal intubation is an established method of securing difficult airways, but there are some reservations about its use because many practitioners find it technically complicated, time-consuming, and unpleasant for patients. Our main goal was to test the safety and efficacy of a 300-mm working length fiberscope (video rhino-laryngoscope) when used for awake nasotracheal intubation in difficult airway cases. This was a prospective, single-center study involving adult patients, having an ASA physical status between I and IV, with laryngopharyngeal pathology causing distorted airway anatomy. Awake nasotracheal intubation, using topical anesthesia and light sedation, was performed using a 300 mm long and 2.9 mm diameter fiberscope equipped with a lubricated reinforced endotracheal tube. The primary outcomes were the success and duration of the procedure. Patients' periprocedural satisfaction and other incidents were recorded. We successfully intubated all 25 patients included in this study. The mean ±SD duration of the procedure, starting from the passage of the intubating tube through one of the nostrils until the endotracheal intubation, was 76 ± 36 seconds. Most of the patients showed no discomfort during the procedure with statistical significance between the No reaction Group with the Slight grimacing Group (95%CI 0.13, 0.53, p = 0.047) and the Heavy grimacing Group (95%CI 0.05, 0.83, p = 0.003). The mean ±SD satisfaction score 24 hours post-intervention was 1.8 ± 0.86 - mild discomfort. No significant incidents occurred. Our study showed that a 300-mm working length flexible endoscope is fast, safe, and well-tolerated for nasotracheal awake intubation under challenging airways.

Difficulties or failures in securing the airway still occur and can lead to permanent disabilities and mortality. Patients with head and neck pathologies ... Jove

Implementing neonatal hearing screening has significantly reduced the age at which hearing impairments are detected in children. Nevertheless, objective electrophysiological assessments, such as auditory brainstem response (ABR) or auditory steady-state response (ASSR) testing, are often necessary for children older than six months. These evaluations should be conducted while the child is asleep to obtain accurate and interpretable results, as movement and muscle activity can introduce artifacts that compromise the quality of the recordings. In this narrative review, we evaluate sedation strategies in paediatric procedures, focusing on the efficacy, safety, and practicality of agents/routes for inducing sleep during ABR/ASSR testing. Sedation choices should prioritise patient safety, clinical context, and result reliability and be tailored to the individual’s age, health status, and procedural needs.

Background: The rigid tube for laryngoscopy is an instrument used in ENT, for inspecting the larynx and its vicinity. We used it to facilitate intubation, in ENT patients. Methods: Twenty patients attending for surgery were included for study. Group 1 (n=10) had no airway pathology but at least two predictors of an anatomically difficult airway. Group 2 (n=10) had an obstructing airway pathology. After anesthesia induction, classical laryngoscopy was performed, and intubation grade registered. Using the retromolar approach the rigid tube advanced slowly, the epiglottis was lifted, and the vocal cords were visualized. The bougie was introduced through the rigid tube into the trachea, the rigid tube was extracted, and the intubating tube was placed in the trachea, over the bougie. Results: The mean (SD) maneuver duration was 59.4 (18.2) sec. The Cormack-Lehane view of the glottis at classical laryngoscopy was poor in four patients in Group 1 and six patients in Group 2. The lowest desaturation was 82%. No complications other than sore throat were noted. Conclusion: The rigid tube for laryngoscopy is a useful tool for intubation in ENT patients. We noticed an advantage against classical intubation in patients with base of tongue carcinoma, reduced mouth opening and protruding upper incisors with this instrument.

The unexpected problematic airway represents a large proportion of anesthesia-related morbidity and mortality. The retromolar or paraglossal approach is an alternative to the majority of the rigid instruments used for tracheal intubation, which follow the midline to access the glottis. This single-center, prospective case-series study offers an option to conventional laryngoscopy in case of a poor glottic view, introducing an instrument (the rigid tube for laryngoscopy) that uses the retromolar approach to accomplish tracheal intubation. If after anesthesia induction, the modified Cormack-Lehane glottis view grade >2b, the intubation is carried further with the rigid tube. The tube follows the direction of the thyroid cartilage while advancing from the labial commissure, displacing the tongue to the contralateral side. Adjusting the position of the larynx with the nondominant hand by gently pushing the thyroid cartilage and following an imaginary line towards it while advancing it improves the time needed for proper glottis visualization. Once the epiglottis is in sight, the practitioner progresses slowly, lifting the epiglottis and aiming the tip of the tube more anteriorly. When the glottis appears in the visual field, the intubating tube introducer is placed in the trachea, and a lubricated cuffed intubating tube is advanced over the introducer after the rigid tube is extracted. This tool was tested on 30 patients with an unsatisfactory glottic view when using the Macintosh laryngoscope and obtained excellent results with respect to intubation time and complications. The reduced visual field is the main limitation of this method, which requires a training period for reasonable expertise. This simple, robust, and cheap instrument could be a rescue option in case of a difficult airway.