The Vortex model: A different approach to the difficult airway

Oropharyngeal Hemorrhage and Difficult Airway Management: A Decision Not to Intubate

BACKGROUND

Bleeding in the upper airways is an important cause of airway-related death. A higher incidence of airway management failure and complications after intubation attempts in the emergency department (ED) had been suggested. Airway management of patients with active oropharyngeal hemorrhage may be challenging, leading the clinician to modify the approach.

CASE REPORT

A 57-year-old woman presented to the ED with oropharyngeal hemorrhage after an extensive invasive dental procedure. She was on long-term warfarin therapy due to aortic and mitral valve replacement, which she suspended 5 days prior and restarted the day after the procedure. Besides the active bleeding, swelling, and hematoma of the face, the patient had other signs of "difficult airway," so there were serious questions on when and how to manage the airway. Several strategies to address the airway were considered, the main point being an early versus later intubation. As the patient remained clinically stable, she was conservatively managed with local hemostasis and coagulopathy reversal. The patient was transferred to the intensive care unit, where she remained stable and was successfully discharged after restart on warfarin. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: When faced with an oropharyngeal hemorrhage, emergency physicians may be compelled to secure and protect the airway. This could be achieved by planning several strategies. Nevertheless, in selected patients, and considering the circumstances, not addressing the airway is a reasonable and justifiable alternative.

Emergent use of tube tip in pharynx technique in “cannot intubate cannot oxygenate” situation: A case report

BACKGROUND

A “cannot intubate, cannot oxygenate (CICO)” situation is a life-threatening condition that requires emergent management to establish a route for oxygenation to prevent oxygen desaturation. In this paper, we describe airway management in a patient with an extended parotid tumor that invaded the airways during CICO using the endotracheal tube tip in the pharynx (TTIP) technique.

CASE SUMMARY

A 43-year-old man was diagnosed with parotid tumor for > 10 years. Computed tomography and nasopharyngeal fiberoptic examination revealed a substantial mass from the right parotid region with a deep extension through the lateral pharyngeal region to the retropharyngeal region and obliteration of the nasopharynx to the oropharynx. Tumor excision was arranged. However, we encountered CICO during anesthesia induction. An endotracheal tube was used as an emergency supraglottic airway device (TTIP) to ventilate the patient in a CICO situation where other tools such as laryngeal mask airway or mask ventilation were not suitable for this complicated and difficult airway. The patient did not experience desaturation despite sudden loss of definite airway. During tracheostomy, the pulse oximetry remained 100% with our technique of ventilating the patient. The arterial blood gas analysis revealed PaCO₂ 35.7 mmHg and PaO₂ 242.5 mmHg upon 50% oxygenation afterward.

CONCLUSION

Using an endotracheal tube as a supraglottic airway device, patients may have increased survival without experiencing life-threatening desaturation.

What we have learned from a patient with partial tracheal rupture caused by penetrating neck injuries: a case report

BACKGROUND

Airway management of patients with direct airway trauma caused by penetrating neck injuries is always challenging. When a failed airway occurs and surgery access is difficult, it is crucial to find the optimal approach to save the life. We propose the concept "Cannot intubate, Cannot oxygenate, Difficult surgery access" to describe this emergency scenario.

CASE PRESENTATION

We report a case of a 24-year-old woman who presented with partial tracheal rupture and pneumothorax caused by a knife stab injury to the neck. A "double setup" strategy, simultaneous preparation for orotracheal intubation and tracheotomy, was carried out before rapid sequence induction. A tracheotomy under local anesthesia or an awake intubation was not preferred in consideration that the patient had a high risk of being uncooperative owing to existing mental disease and potential smothering sensation during operation. During rapid sequence intubation, distal part of the tube penetrates the tear and creates a false lumen outside the trachea then a failed airway subsequently occurred. Rescue tracheotomy was successfully performed by an otolaryngology surgeon, with the help of limited ventilation using sequential bag-mask and laryngeal mask airway ventilation provided by an anesthesiologist, without severe sequelae.

CONCLUSIONS

The endotracheal tube have a risk of penetrating the tear outside the trachea in patient with partial tracheal rupture during orotracheal intubation, and once it occurs, proceeding directly to an emergency invasive airway access with optimizing oxygenation throughout procedure might increase the chance of success in rescuing the airway.