Anaesthesia
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
To shape or not to shape...simulated bougie-assisted difficult intubation in a manikin.
Thirty anaesthetists attempted to place a derived 'optimal' curve bougie or a straight bougie in the trachea of a manikin, in a randomised cross-over study. A Grade 3 Cormack and Lehane laryngoscopic view was simulated. The anaesthetists were blinded to success (tracheal placement) or failure (oesophageal placement). ⋯ On a separate occasion, under identical laboratory conditions, 30 anaesthetists attempted to place a straight coudé (angled)-tipped bougie or a straight straight-tipped bougie in the trachea of a manikin. The success rates with the coudé- and straight-tipped bougies were 43 and 0%, respectively, giving a difference (95% confidence interval) of 43% (21-61%) between the two bougies (p < 0.001). These results suggest that bougies used to facilitate difficult intubation should be curved and have a coudé tip.