The normal and the challenging pediatric airway

Management of a child’s airway is one of the main sources of stress for anesthetists who do not routinely anesthetize children. Unfortunately, trainees are gaining less experience in pediatric airway management than in the past, which is particularly difficult at a time when some beliefs about airway management are being challenged and airway management is less standardized. Fortunately, most children have an easily managed, normal airway. Nevertheless, it is of vital importance to teach our trainees the basic airway skills that are probably the most important skill in an anesthetists’ repertoire when it comes to a difficult airway situation. This review focuses on the airway management in children with a normal and a challenging airway. Different choices of airway management in children, and their advantages and disadvantages are discussed. Furthermore, the three broad causes of a challenging airway in children and infants are highlighted – the difficulty obtaining a mask seal, difficulty visualizing the vocal cords, and the third cause in which the larynx can be visualized but the difficulty lies at or beyond that level. Guidelines are given how to deal with these patients as well as with the feared but rare scenario of ‘cannot ventilate, cannot intubate’ in children.     

Proposal for the management of the unexpected difficult pediatric airway

The incidence of unanticipated difficult or failed airway in otherwise healthy children is rare, and routine airway management in pediatric patients is easy in experienced hands. However, difficulties with airway management in healthy children are not infrequent in nonpediatric anesthetists and are a main reason for pediatric anesthesia‐related morbidity and mortality. Clear concepts and strategies are, therefore, required to maintain oxygenation and ventilation in children. Several complicated algorithms for the management of the unanticipated difficult adult and pediatric airway have been proposed, but a simple structured algorithm for the pediatric patient with unanticipated difficult airway is missing. This paper proposes a simple step‐wise algorithm for the unexpected difficult pediatric airway based on an adult Difficult Airway Society (DAS) protocol, discusses the role of recently introduced airway devices, and suggests a content of a pediatric airway trolley. It is intended as an easy to memorize and a practical guide for the anesthetist only occasionally involved in pediatric anesthesia care as well as a call to stimulate discussion about the management of the unanticipated difficult pediatric airway.     

Craniofacial surgery and specific airway problems

Infants and children undergoing craniofacial surgery may present with a wide range of diseases and conditions posing an array of challenges to the anesthesiologist. Optimal perioperative care requires an understanding of these diseases and their impact on airway and anesthetic management. For those children with anomalies affecting airway anatomy, soft tissues of the head and neck, or skeletal mobility, advanced airway management techniques (ie, modalities other than direct laryngoscopy) may be required to secure the airway. Additionally, some craniofacial surgical procedures have direct implications on airway management, such as with Le Fort III midface advancement involving halo distractor application, where the distractor device precludes facemask ventilation. For all of these patients, the anesthetic and airway management plans must be tailored to the surgery being performed, the patient's specific conditions, and take into consideration all phases of perioperative care. In this review, we present some of the more commonly encountered craniofacial abnormalities affecting airway management.     

Pediatric syndromes with noncraniofacial anomalies impacting the airways

Syndromes with noncraniofacial abnormalities can be a real challenge in terms of airway management. The key to success is effective preparation, presence of personnel with expertise in difficult pediatric airway management, regular training and familiarity with difficult intubation equipment, and teamwork. Considering that there are a very large number of syndromes, with variable phenotypic expression, the management strategy of every case will be dictated by the anatomical and functional airway as assessed on physical examination and subsidiary examinations before induction of anesthesia.     

Management of the difficult and failed airway in obstetric anesthesia

Difficulty with airway management in obstetric patients occurs infrequently and failure to secure an airway is rare. A failed airway may result in severe physical and emotional morbidity and possibly death to the mother and baby. Additionally, the family, along with the medical and nursing staff, may face emotional and financial trauma. With the increase in the number of cesarean sections performed under regional anesthesia, the experience and training in performing endotracheal intubations in obstetric anesthesia has decreased. This article reviews the management of the difficult and failed airway in obstetric anesthesia. Underpinning this important topic is the difference between the nonpregnant and pregnant state. Obstetric anatomy and physiology, endotracheal intubation in the obstetric patient, and modifications to the difficult airway algorithms required for obstetric patients will be discussed. We emphasize that decisions regarding airway management must consider the urgency of delivery of the baby. Finally, the need for specific equipment in the obstetric difficult and failed airway is discussed. Worldwide maternal mortality reflects the health of a nation. However, one could also claim that, particularly in Western countries, maternal mortality may reflect the health of the specialty of anesthesia.     

Management of bilateral congenital bronchial stenosis in an infant

Congenital bronchial stenosis is a very uncommon condition in children. A full-term neonate showed severe respiratory distress soon after birth. Bronchoscopy and spiral computed tomography with multiplanar reconstruction disclosed a short stenosis of the left main bronchus, next to the carina, and another stenosis in the intermediate bronchus with air trapping in the right middle and lower lobes. The child underwent resection and reconstruction of the left main bronchus, and right middle and lower lobectomies after a failed attempt of bronchoscopic dilatation of the intermediate bronchus. A temporary silicon tracheal stent was necessary to achieve permanent extubation. The patient was discharged in good condition without any oxygen dependency and remains asymptomatic 1 year after surgery. Management of children with airway stenosis is complex, and surgeons involved in it should be familiar with multiple surgical and endoscopic techniques. A team approach in a referral center is the best option to achieve an optimal result.     

An institutional approach to the management of the ‘Can't Intubate,Can't Oxygenate’ emergency in children

The ‘Can't Intubate Can't Oxygenate’ emergency is rare in children. Nevertheless, airway clinicians involved in pediatric airway management must be able to rescue the airway percutaneously through the front of the neck should this situation be encountered. Little evidence exists in children to guide rescue techniques, and extrapolation of adult evidence may be problematic due to anatomical differences. This document reviews the currently available evidence, and presents a practical approach to standardizing equipment, techniques, and training for managing the ‘Can't Intubate Can't Oxygenate’ emergency in children.     

Supraglottic airway devices in difficult airway management: a retrospective cohort study of 658,104 general anaesthetics registered in the Danish Anaesthesia Database

Indications for using supraglottic airway devices have widened over time and they now hold a prominent role in guidelines for difficult airway management. We aimed to describe the use of supraglottic airway devices in difficult airway management. We included adult patients undergoing general anaesthesia registered in the Danish Anaesthesia Database from 2008 to 2012 whose airway management had been recorded as difficult, defined as: ≥ 3 tracheal intubation attempts; failed tracheal intubation; or difficult facemask ventilation. In the Danish Anaesthesia Database, a separate difficult airway management module requires the technique used in each successive airway management attempt to be recorded. The primary aim of the study was to describe the use of supraglottic airway devices in cases of difficult airway management. Secondary aims were to examine success rates of supraglottic airway devices in difficult airway management cases, and specifically in the cases of ‘cannot intubate, cannot facemask ventilate’. Difficult airway management occurred in 4898 (0.74% (95%CI 0.72–0.76%)) of 658,104 records of general anaesthesia. Supraglottic airway devices were used or use was attempted in 607 cases of difficult airway management (12.4% (95%CI 11.5–13.3%)), and were successful in 395 (65.1% (95%CI 61.2–68.8%)) cases. In ‘cannot intubate, cannot facemask ventilate’ situations, supraglottic airway devices were used in 86 (18.9% (95%CI 15.6–22.8%)) of 455 records and were successful in 54 (62.8% (95%CI 52.2–72.3%)) cases. We found that supraglottic airway devices are not widely used in the management of the difficult airway despite their prominent role in difficult airway management guidelines.     

Pre-hospital airway management: guidelines from a task force from the Scandinavian Society for Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

This article is intended as a generic guide to evidence-based airway management for all categories of pre-hospital personnel. It is based on a review of relevant literature but the majority of the studies have not been performed under realistic, pre-hospital conditions and the recommendations are therefore based on a low level of evidence (D). The advice given depends on the qualifications of the personnel available in a given emergency medical service (EMS). Anaesthetic training and routine in anaesthesia and neuromuscular blockade is necessary for the use of most techniques in the treatment of patients with airway reflexes. For anaesthesiologists, the Task Force commissioned by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine recommends endotracheal intubation (ETI) following rapid sequence induction when securing the pre-hospital airway, although repeated unsuccessful intubation attempts should be avoided independent of formal qualifications. Other physicians, as well as paramedics and other EMS personnel, are recommended the lateral trauma recovery position as a basic intervention combined with assisted mask-ventilation in trauma patients. When performing advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation, we recommend that non-anaesthesiologists primarily use a supraglottic airway device. A supraglottic device such as the laryngeal tube or the intubation laryngeal mask should also be available as a backup device for anaesthesiologists in failed ETI.     

The airway in patients with craniofacial abnormalities

Airway management for patients with craniofacial disorders poses many challenges. The anaesthesiologist must be familiar with the normal bony and soft-tissue anatomy in the airway and how anatomy is altered by various congenital disorders. Specific areas to assess include the oral cavity, anterior mandibular space, maxilla, temporomandibular joint and vertebral column. Congenital conditions that may alter normal anatomy and therefore anaesthetic management include cleft lip and palate with or without Pierre Robin syndrome, craniofacial dysostosis, mandibulofacial dysostosis/Treacher Collins syndrome, hemifacial microsomia, Klippel-Feil syndrome, Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome, trisomy 21/Down's syndrome, Freeman-Sheldon/whistling face syndrome/craniocarpotarsal dysplasia, fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva, mucopolysaccharidosis and vascular malformations.     

A technique for maintenance of airway access in infants with a difficult airway following tracheal extubation

Tracheal extubation of patients with a difficult airway represents a challenge to anaesthesiologists and intensive care physicians. While a variety of techniques designed to maintain access to the airway in case of the need for tracheal reintubation have been described in adults, no reports have been published in infants and young children. We describe an approach to this issue in a young child with severe micrognathia.     

A framework for the management of the pediatric airway

Critical airway incidents in children are a frequent problem in pediatric anesthesia and remain a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Young children are at particular risk in the perioperative period. Delayed management of airway obstruction can quickly lead to serious complications due to the short apnea tolerance in children. A simple, time critical, and pediatric‐specific airway management approach combined with dedicated teaching, training, and frequent practice will help to reduce airway‐related pediatric morbidity and mortality. There is currently no pediatric‐specific universal framework available to guide practice. Current algorithms are modifications of adult approaches which are often inappropriate because of differences in age‐related anatomy, physiology, and neurodevelopment. A universal and pragmatic approach is required to achieve acceptance across diverse pediatric clinicians, societies, and groups. Such a framework will also help to establish minimum standards for pediatric airway equipment, personnel, and medications whenever pediatric airway management is required.     

Airway management in emergency situations

Securing and monitoring the airway are among the key requirements of appropriate therapy in emergency patients. Failures to secure the airways can drastically increase morbidity and mortality of patients within a very short time. Therefore, the entire range of measures needed to secure the airway in an emergency, without intermediate ventilation and oxygenation, is limited to 30-40 seconds. Endotracheal intubation is often called the 'gold standard' for airway management in an emergency, but multiple failed intubation attempts do not result in maintaining oxygenation; instead, they endanger the patient by prolonging hypoxia and causing additional trauma to the upper airways. Thus, knowledge and availability of alternative procedures are also essential in every emergency setting. Given the great variety of techniques available, it is important to establish a well-planned, methodical protocol within the framework of an algorithm. This not only facilitates the preparation of equipment and the training of personnel, it also ensures efficient decision-making under time pressure. Most anaesthesia-related deaths are due to hypoxaemia when difficulty in securing the airway is encountered, especially in obstetrics during induction of anaesthesia for caesarean delivery. The most commonly occurring adverse respiratory events are failure to intubate, failure to recognize oesophageal intubation, and failure to ventilate. Thus, it is essential that every anaesthesiologist working on the labour and delivery ward is comfortable with the algorithm for the management of failed intubation. The algorithm for emergency airway management describing the sequence of various procedures has to be adapted to internal standards and to techniques that are available.     

Strategies for the prevention of airway complications – a narrative review

Despite being infrequent, complications of airway management remain an important contributor to morbidity and mortality during anaesthesia and care of the critically ill. Developments in the last three decades have made anaesthesia safer, and this has been mirrored in the equipment and techniques available for airway management. Modern technology including novel oxygenation modalities, widespread availability of capnography, second‐generation supraglottic airway devices and videolaryngoscopy provide the tools to make airway management safer still. However, technology will only take safety so far, and non‐technical aspects of airway management are critically important for communication and decision making during airway crises, acknowledging a ‘cannot intubate, cannot oxygenate’ situation and transitioning to emergency front of neck airway. Randomised controlled trials provide little useful information about safety in this setting, and data from registries and databases are likely to be of more value. This narrative review focuses on recent evidence in this area.     

Comparison of airway management with the intubating laryngeal mask, laryngeal tube and CobraPLA by paramedical students in anaesthetized patients

BACKGROUND: Because of the importance of airway management in emergency care, alternative methods with shorter learning curves for inexperienced personnel have been looked for as a substitute for endotracheal intubation (ETI). METHODS: We compared the success of insertion, oxygenation and ventilation of the intubating laryngeal mask (ILMA), laryngeal tube (LT) and CobraPLA (COB) in anaesthetized patients when used by paramedical students. After informed consent, 96 patients were monitored and anaesthetized for general surgery without the use of a muscle relaxant. After the induction of anaesthesia, 32 paramedical students inserted the ILMA, LT or COB in a random order and ventilated the patient for a 60-s period. The number of insertion attempts, the time needed for insertion, and oxygenation and ventilation parameters were recorded. The students gave a subjective evaluation of the airway devices after the test. RESULTS: Twenty-four of the 32 students (75%) successfully inserted ILMA at the first attempt, compared with 14 of 32 (44%) for LT and seven of 32 (22%) for COB (P<0.001, ILMA vs. COB). One student failed to insert ILMA after all three attempts, compared with seven of 32 (21%) using LT and seven of 32 (21%) using COB (P=not significant). Oxygenation and ventilation parameters did not differ between the groups after successful insertion. CONCLUSION: Clinically inexperienced paramedical students can successfully use ILMA in anaesthetized patients. Further investigations are warranted to study whether ILMA or LT can replace ETI in emergency airway management when used by inexperienced medical or paramedical staff.     

Complications associated with paediatric airway management during the COVID-19 pandemic: an international,multicentre, observational study

Respiratory adverse events in adults with COVID-19 undergoing general anaesthesia can be life-threatening. However, there remains a knowledge gap about respiratory adverse events in children with COVID-19. We created an international observational registry to collect airway management outcomes in children with COVID-19 who were having a general anaesthetic. We hypothesised that children with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 would experience more hypoxaemia and complications than those without. Between 3 April 2020 and 1 November 2020, 78 international centres participated. In phase 1, centres collected outcomes on all children (age ≤ 18 y) having a general anaesthetic for 2 consecutive weeks. In phase 2, centres recorded outcomes for children with test-confirmed or suspected COVID-19 (based on symptoms) having a general anaesthetic. We did not study children whose tracheas were already intubated. The primary outcome was the incidence of hypoxaemia during airway management. Secondary outcomes included: incidence of other complications; and first-pass success rate for tracheal intubation. In total, 7896 children were analysed (7567 COVID-19 negative and 329 confirmed or presumed COVID-19 positive). The incidence of hypoxaemia during airway management was greater in children who were COVID-19 positive (24 out of 329 (7%) vs. 214 out of 7567 (3%); OR 2.70 (95%CI 1.70–4.10)). Children who had symptoms of COVID-19 had a higher incidence of hypoxaemia compared with those who were asymptomatic (9 out of 51 (19%) vs. 14 out of 258 (5%), respectively; OR 3.7 (95%CI 1.5–9.1)). Children with confirmed or presumed COVID-19 have an increased risk of hypoxaemia during airway management in conjunction with general anaesthesia.     

Anesthesia for shared airway surgery in children

Shared airway surgery in children is a complex, high‐risk undertaking that requires continuous communication and cooperation between the anesthetic and surgical teams. Airway abnormalities commonly seen in children, the surgical options, and the anesthetic techniques that can be used to care for this vulnerable population are discussed. Many of these procedures were traditionally carried out using jet ventilation, or intermittent tracheal intubation, but increasingly spontaneously breathing “tubeless” techniques are being used. This review has been written from both the surgical and anesthetic perspective, highlighting the concerns that both specialties have in relation to the maintenance of surgical access and operating conditions, and the need for the provision of anesthesia, oxygenation, and ventilation where the airway is the primary site of operation.     

Airway management in infants and children

Airway management in children and infants, especially in those with a difficult airway, presents a major challenge for every anaesthesiologist, paediatrician, paediatric intensivist and emergency physician. The most important differences, as compared to adult airway management, result from the specific aspects of paediatric anatomy and physiology, which are more important to consider the younger the child is. A number of inherited and acquired pathological syndromes have significant impact on the airway management in this age group. During past years several new devices have been introduced into clinical practice, intended to improve airway management in this age group. Important new studies have gathered evidence about risks and benefits of certain confounding variables for airway problems and specific techniques for solving them.Several risk factors for airway-related problems during anaesthesia in children having a ‘cold’ have been identified, and the use of propofol in combination with the LMA is suggested if anaesthesia cannot be postponed in children with a recent upper airway infection. The use of cuffed endotracheal tubes appears to be advantageous in certain clinical situations, and may be safe in infants if the appropriate tube size is carefully determined and continuous monitoring of the cuff pressure is performed to avoid post-intubation tracheal stenosis. Promising novel video-assisted systems comprising appropriately sized and redesigned fibre-optic endoscopes have been introduced for the management of the difficult airway in small children, infants and even premature newborns. Today, the laryngeal mask airway is a well-accepted extra-tracheal airway device in paediatric anaesthesia, and the flexible LMA allows for its use during ENT and dental surgery procedures. However, LMA-associated partial obstruction of the airway in infants requires great caution when these devices are used in this age group. The recently introduced Proseal LMA for children may allow higher airway pressures and improved protection from gastric inflation, e.g. in paediatric ambulatory anaesthesia. The LMA may also serve well to guide the endoscope during fibre-optic intubation in children and infants.Prediction of the unexpected difficult airway in infants and children remains really difficult, as the respective screening systems have been developed in adults and are, for a variety of reasons, not applicable to young children and infants. A thorough determination of the individual risk of developing airway complications, as well as continuous attention to airway patency during the procedure, are prerequisites for reducing airway-related morbidity and mortality in children and infants during anaesthesia. Appropriate preparation of the available equipment and frequent training in management algorithms for all personnel involved appear to be very important.     

A French survey of paediatric airway management use in tonsillectomy and appendicectomy

BACKGROUND: There are no epidemiological data describing tracheal intubation and laryngeal mask airway (LMATM) use in paediatric anaesthesia. This analysis focused on the factors leading to the indication for an airway management procedure, i.e. tracheal intubation and laryngeal mask airway vs face mask during general anaesthesia for tonsillectomy and appendicectomy. METHODS: The data were recorded in the French survey of Practical Anaesthesia performed in 1996. Two main types of surgical procedures were selected: tonsillectomy and appendicectomy because of the number of patients and the need to use an invasive airway management technique. RESULTS: During a 1-year period, 627 anaesthetics for appendicectomy and 653 anaesthetics for tonsillectomy were recorded in the sample under consideration. Tracheal intubation or laryngeal mask airway was undertaken in 66% of tonsillectomies and 84% of appendicectomies. Univariate analysis showed that tracheal intubation/laryngeal mask were used significantly more often in older children, with long duration of anaesthesia, in nonambulatory procedures and in procedures performed at an academic centre. When these variables were included in a multivariate analysis, the duration of anaesthesia over 30 min was a factor linked to the use of tracheal intubation/laryngeal mask airway for the two types of surgery (P < 0.0001). For tonsillectomy, inpatients were 2.9 times more likely to be intubated (or have an laryngeal mask airway) than were outpatients. For appendicectomy, older children were 3.4 times more likely to be intubated (or have an laryngeal mask airway) than younger children. CONCLUSIONS: This large French survey shows that the use of tracheal intubation/laryngeal mask airway in this country is primarily related to a predicted long duration of anaesthesia.     

Major complications of airway management: a prospective multicentre observational study

We conducted an observational study of serious airway complications, using similar methods to the fourth UK National Audit Project (NAP4) over a period of 1 year across four hospitals in one region in the UK. We also conducted an activity survey over a week, using NAP4 methods to yield an estimate for relevant denominators to help interpret the primary data. There were 17 serious airway complications, defined as: failed airway management leading to cancellation of surgery (eight); airway management in recovery (five); unplanned intensive care admission (three); and unplanned emergency front of neck access (one). There were no reports of death or brain damage. This was an estimate of 0.028% (1 in 3600) complications using the denominator of 61,000 general anaesthetics per year in the region. Complications in patients with ‘predicted easy’ airways were rare (approximately 1 in 14,200), but 45 times more common in those with ‘predicted difficult’ airways (approximately 1 in 315). Airway management in both groups was similar (induction of anaesthesia followed by supraglottic airway or tracheal tube). Use of awake/sedation intubation, videolaryngoscopy and high-flow nasal oxygenation were uncommon even in the predicted difficult airway patients (in 2.7%, 32.4% and 9.5% of patients, respectively). We conclude that the incidence of serious airway complications is at least as high as it was during NAP4. Despite airway prediction being used, this is not informing subsequent management.