Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The Inaccuracy of Using Landmark Techniques for Cricothyroid Membrane Identification: A Comparison of Three Techniques.
Successful cricothyrotomy is predicated on accurate identification of the cricothyroid membrane (CTM) by palpation of superficial anatomy. However, recent research has indicated that accuracy of the identification of the CTM can be as low as 30%, even in the hands of skilled providers. To date, there are very little data to suggest how to best identify this critical landmark. The objective was to compare three different methods of identifying the CTM. ⋯ All three methods performed poorly overall. All three techniques might potentially be even less accurate in instances where the superficial anatomy is not palpable due to body habitus. These findings should alert clinicians to the significant risk of a misplaced cricothyrotomy and highlight the critical need for future research.