Clinical recommendations for in-hospital airway management during aerosol-transmitting procedures in the setting of a viral pandemic.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), can lead to severe pneumonia and multiorgan failure. While most of the infected patients develop no or only mild symptoms, some need respiratory support or even invasive ventilation. The exact route of transmission is currently under investigation. While droplet exposure and direct contact seem to be the most significant ways of transmitting the disease, aerosol transmission appears to be possible under circumstances favored by high viral load. Despite the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), this situation potentially puts healthcare workers at risk of infection, especially if they are involved in airway management. Various recommendations and international guidelines aim to protect healthcare workers, although evidence-based research confirming the benefits of these approaches is still scarce. In this article, we summarize the current literature and recommendations for airway management of COVID-19 patients.

Optimal NIV Medicare Access Promotion: Patients With COPD: A Technical Expert Panel Report From the American College of Chest Physicians, the American Association for Respiratory Care, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, and the American Thoracic Society.

This document summarizes the work of the COPD Technical Expert Panel working group. For patients with COPD, the most pressing current coverage barriers identified were onerous diagnostic requirements focused on oxygenation (rather than ventilation) and difficulty obtaining bilevel devices with backup rate capabilities. Because of these difficulties, many patients with COPD were instead sometimes prescribed home mechanical ventilators. Critical evidence supports changes to current policies, including randomized controlled trial evidence suggesting a mortality benefit from bilevel positive airway pressure with backup rate and updated clinical practice guidelines from the American Thoracic Society as well as the European Respiratory Society. To achieve optimal access to noninvasive ventilation for patients with COPD, we make the following key recommendations: (1) removal of the need for overnight oximetry testing; (2) the ability to initiate therapy using bilevel devices with backup rate capability; and (3) increased duration of time to meet adherence criteria (ie, a second 90-day trial period) in those patients actively engaged in their care. Clear guidelines based on medical necessity are also included for patients who require initiation of or switch to a home mechanical ventilator. Adoption of these proposed recommendations would result in the right device, for the right type of patient with COPD, at the right time. Finally, we emphasize the need for adequate clinical support during initiation and maintenance of home noninvasive ventilation in such patients.

Procedural sedation at role 1: applicability to military clinicians and minimum monitoring criteria.

Procedural sedation is defined as producing a state of reduced consciousness, where the patient is still able to respond to verbal or physical stimulus and to continuously maintain a patent airway and adequate ventilation. This can be done to facilitate treatment that would not be otherwise possible. Recent evidence, guidelines and new equipment introductions have improved the safety of procedural sedation at UK role 1 medical treatment facilities (MTFs). A role 1 MTF is defined by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as a medical facility focusing on the provision of primary healthcare, specialised first aid, triage, resuscitation and stabilisation, and is usually staffed by a general practitioner or a general duties medical officer. This paper aims to update role 1 clinicians on the current evidence base and guidance regarding monitoring of patients during procedural sedation.

The case for a 3rd generation supraglottic airway device facilitating direct vision placement.

Although 1st and 2nd generation supraglottic airway devices (SADs) have many desirable features, they are nevertheless inserted in a similar 'blind' way as their 1st generation predecessors. Clinicians mostly still rely entirely on subjective indirect assessments to estimate correct placement which supposedly ensures a tight seal. Malpositioning and potential airway compromise occurs in more than half of placements. Vision-guided insertion can improve placement. In this article we propose the development of a 3rd generation supraglottic airway device, equipped with cameras and fiberoptic illumination, to visualise insertion of the device, enable immediate manoeuvres to optimise SAD position, verify whether correct 1st and 2nd seals are achieved and check whether size selected is appropriate. We do not provide technical details of such a '3rd generation' device, but rather present a theoretical analysis of its desirable properties, which are essential to overcome the remaining limitations of current 1st and 2nd generation devices. We also recommend that this further milestone improvement, i.e. ability to place the SAD accurately under direct vision, be eligible for the moniker '3rd generation'. Blind insertion of SADs should become the exception and we anticipate, as in other domains such as central venous cannulation and nerve block insertions, vision-guided placement becoming the gold standard.

Advances in airway management and mechanical ventilation in inhalation injury.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Airway management, mechanical ventilation, and treatment of systemic poisoning in burn patients with inhalation injury remains challenging. This review summarizes new concepts as well as open questions. RECENT FINDINGS: Several life-threatening complications, such as airway patency impairment and respiratory insufficiency, can arise in burn patients and require adequate and timely airway management. However, unnecessary endotracheal intubation should be avoided. Direct visual inspection via nasolaryngoscopy can guide appropriate airway management decisions. In cases of lower airway injury, bronchoscopy is recommended to remove casts and estimate the extent of the injury in intubated patients. Several mechanical ventilation strategies have been studied. An interesting modality might be high-frequency percussive ventilation. However, to date, there is no sound evidence that patients with inhalation injury should be ventilated with modes other than those applied to non-burn patients. In all burn patients exposed to enclosed fire, carbon monoxide as well as cyanide poisoning should be suspected. Carbon monoxide poisoning should be treated with an inspiratory oxygen fraction of 100%, whereas cyanide poisoning should be treated with hydroxocobalamin. SUMMARY: Burn patients need specialized care that requires specific knowledge about airway management, mechanical ventilation, and carbon monoxide and cyanide poisoning.

The effects of labor on airway outcomes with Supreme™ laryngeal mask in women undergoing cesarean delivery under general anesthesia: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Pregnancy is associated with higher incidence of failed endotracheal intubation and is exacerbated by labor. However, the influence of labor on airway outcomes with laryngeal mask airway (LMA) for cesarean delivery is unknown. METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study on LMA use during cesarean delivery. Healthy parturients who fasted > 4 h undergoing Category 2 or 3 cesarean delivery with Supreme™ LMA (sLMA) under general anesthesia were included. We excluded parturients with BMI > 35 kg/m2, gastroesophageal reflux disease, or potentially difficult airway (Mallampati score of 4, upper respiratory tract or neck pathology). Anesthesia and airway management reflected clinical standard at the study center. After rapid sequence induction and cricoid pressure, sLMA was inserted as per manufacturer's recommendations. Our primary outcome was time to effective ventilation (time from when sLMA was picked up until appearance of end-tidal carbon dioxide capnography), and secondary outcomes include first-attempt insertion failure, oxygen saturation, ventilation parameters, mucosal trauma, pulmonary aspiration, and Apgar scores. Differences between labor status were tested using Student's t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, or Fisher's exact test, as appropriate. Quantitative associations between labor status and outcomes were determined using univariate logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Data from 584 parturients were analyzed, with 37.8% in labor. Labor did not significantly affect time to effective ventilation (mean (SD) for labor: 16.0 (5.75) seconds; no labor: 15.3 (3.35); mean difference: -0.65 (95%CI: - 1.49 to 0.18); p = 0.1262). However, labor was associated with increased first-attempt insertion failure and blood on sLMA surface. No reduction in oxygen saturation or pulmonary aspiration was noted. CONCLUSIONS: Although no significant increase in time to effective ventilation was noted, labor may increase the number of insertion attempts and oropharyngeal trauma with sLMA use for cesarean delivery in parturients at low risk of difficult airway. Future studies should investigate the effects of labor on LMA use in high risk parturients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was prospectively registered at clinicaltrials.gov ( NCT02026882 ) on 3 January 2014.

Complications of cricothyroidotomy versus tracheostomy in emergency surgical airway management: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Airway guidelines recommend an emergency surgical airway as a potential life-saving treatment in a "Can't Intubate, Can't Oxygenate" (CICO) situation. Surgical airways can be achieved either through a cricothyroidotomy or tracheostomy. The current literature has limited data regarding complications of cricothyroidotomy and tracheostomy in an emergency situation. The objective of this systematic review is to analyze complications following cricothyroidotomy and tracheostomy in airway emergencies. METHODS: This synthesis of literature was exempt from ethics approval. Eight databases were searched from inception to October 2018, using a comprehensive search strategy. Studies were included if they were randomized controlled trials or observational studies reporting complications following emergency surgical airway. Complications were classified as minor (evolving to spontaneous remission or not requiring intervention or not persisting chronically), major (requiring intervention or persisting chronically), early (from the start of the procedure up to 7 days) and late (beyond 7 days of the procedure). RESULTS: We retrieved 2659 references from our search criteria. Following the removal of duplicates, title and abstract review, 33 articles were selected for full-text reading. Twenty-one articles were finally included in the systematic review. We found no differences in minor, major or early complications between the two techniques. However, late complications were significantly more frequent in the tracheostomy group [OR (95% CI) 0.21 (0.20-0.22), p < 0.0001]. CONCLUSIONS: Our results demonstrate that cricothyroidotomies performed in emergent situations resulted in fewer late complications than tracheostomies. This finding supports the recommendations from the latest Difficult Airway Society (DAS) guidelines regarding using cricothyroidotomy as the technique of choice for emergency surgical airway. However, emergency cricothyroidotomies should be converted to tracheostomies in a timely fashion as there is insufficient evidence to suggest that emergency cricothyrotomies are long term airways.

COVID-19 and Neonatal Respiratory Care: Current Evidence and Practical Approach.

The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has urged the development and implementation of guidelines and protocols on diagnosis, management, infection control strategies, and discharge planning. However, very little is currently known about neonatal COVID-19 and severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections. Thus, many questions arise with regard to respiratory care after birth, necessary protection to health care workers (HCW) in the delivery room and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and safety of bag and mask ventilation, noninvasive respiratory support, deep suctioning, endotracheal intubation, and mechanical ventilation. Indeed, these questions have created tremendous confusion amongst neonatal HCW. In this manuscript, we comprehensively reviewed the current evidence regarding COVID-19 perinatal transmission, respiratory outcomes of neonates born to mothers with COVID-19 and infants with documented SARS-CoV-2 infection, and the evidence for using different respiratory support modalities and aerosol-generating procedures in this specific population. The results demonstrated that to date, neonatal COVID-19 infection is uncommon, generally acquired postnatally, and associated with favorable respiratory outcomes. The reason why infants display a milder spectrum of disease remains unclear. Nonetheless, the risk of severe or critical illness in young patients exists. Currently, the recommended respiratory approach for infants with suspected or confirmed infection is not evidence based but should include all routinely used types of support, with the addition of viral filters, proper personal protective equipment, and placement of infants in isolation rooms, ideally with negative pressure. As information is changing rapidly, clinicians should frequently watch out for updates on the subject. KEY POINTS: · Novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic urged development of guidelines.. · Neonatal COVID-19 disease is uncommon.. · Respiratory outcomes in neonates seems favorable.. · Current neonatal respiratory care should continue.. · Clinicians should watch frequently for updates..

Conjoined twins in 2020 - state of the art and future directions.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: A number of high profile conjoined twin separations have been extensively covered by the world media. Anaesthesia for conjoined twins is a procedure rarely experienced by paediatric anaesthetists. The increased survival of the twins has prompted discussion as to the most appropriate selection of patients, teams and hospitals to provide exceptional anaesthetic care. RECENT FINDINGS: The number of conjoined twins presenting for surgery remains low with many infants not surviving foetal or early neonatal life. Anaesthetic management of less common conjoined infants such as craniopagus twins has highlighted the benefit of careful patient selection, extensive preoperative investigations and meticulous multidisciplinary team planning. The role of simulation of possible adverse perioperative events has been highlighted. Three dimensional anatomical models and virtual reality systems have permitted surgical planning in advance of actual intervention. A number of legal and ethical concerns have been reported especially in the setting of emergency separation where surgery is likely to contribute to death of one of the twins. SUMMARY: There appears to be an expanding role for international teams with extensive separation experience becoming involved in international teleconferencing to improve patient management in low-resource countries. Whether the perioperative outcome is better when the conjoined twins are transferred to major centres for surgery or teams operate in the twin's country of origin remains to be seen.

Emerging trends, techniques, and equipment for airway management in pediatric patients.

Pediatric patients present unique anatomic and physiologic considerations in airway management, which impose significant physiologic limits on safe apnea time before the onset of hypoxemia and subsequent bradycardia. These issues are even more pronounced for the pediatric difficult airway. In the last decade, the development of pediatric sized supraglottic airways specifically designed for intubation, as well as advances in imaging technology such that current pediatric airway equipment now finally rival those for the adult population, has significantly expanded the pediatric anesthesiologist's tool kit for pediatric airway management. Equally important, techniques are increasingly implemented that maintain oxygen delivery to the lungs, safely extending the time available for pediatric airway management. This review will focus on emerging trends and techniques using existing tools to safely handle the pediatric airway including videolaryngoscopy, combination techniques for intubation, techniques for maintaining oxygenation during intubation, airway management in patients at risk for aspiration, and considerations in cannot intubate cannot oxygenate scenarios.

Airway Management in Critical Illness: An Update.

Expertise in airway management is a vital skill for any provider caring for critically ill patients. A growing body of literature has identified the stark difference in periprocedural outcomes of elective intubation in the operating room when compared with emergency intubation in the ICU. A number of strategies to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with airway management in the critically ill have been described. In this review, we provide an updated framework for airway assessment before direct laryngoscopy and video laryngoscopy, and use of newer pharmacologic agents; comment on current concepts in tracheal intubation in the ICU; and address human factors around critical decision-making during ICU airway management.

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A BRILL idea? The benefits, risks, insights, learning and limitations of an emergency airway registry in pre-hospital and retrieval medicine.

Airway management is a cornerstone of emergency care. Development of a robust evidence base to support the practice of pre-hospital emergency anaesthesia is key to the safety and evolution of this common but high-risk procedure. This paper discusses the benefits, risks, insights, learning and limitations of the use of an airway registry in pre-hospital and retrieval medicine, for both research and quality improvement purposes.

Sigh maneuver to enhance assessment of fluid responsiveness during pressure support ventilation.

BACKGROUND: Assessment of fluid responsiveness is problematic in intensive care unit (ICU) patients, in particular for those undergoing modes of partial support, such as pressure support ventilation (PSV). We propose a new test, based on application of a ventilator-generated sigh, to predict fluid responsiveness in ICU patients undergoing PSV. METHODS: This was a prospective bi-centric interventional study conducted in two general ICUs. In 40 critically ill patients with a stable ventilatory PSV pattern and requiring volume expansion (VE), we assessed the variations in arterial systolic pressure (SAP), pulse pressure (PP) and stroke volume index (SVI) consequent to random application of 4-s sighs at three different inspiratory pressures. A radial arterial signal was directed to the MOSTCARE™ pulse contour hemodynamic monitoring system for hemodynamic measurements. Data obtained during sigh tests were recorded beat by beat, while all the hemodynamic parameters were averaged over 30 s for the remaining period of the study protocol. VE consisted of 500 mL of crystalloids over 10 min. A patient was considered a responder if a VE-induced increase in cardiac index (CI) ≥ 15% was observed. RESULTS: The slopes for SAP, SVI and PP of were all significantly different between responders and non-responders (p < 0.0001, p = 0.0004 and p < 0.0001, respectively). The AUC of the slope of SAP (0.99; sensitivity 100.0% (79.4-100.0%) and specificity 95.8% (78.8-99.9%) was significantly greater than the AUC for PP (0.91) and SVI (0.83) (p = 0.04 and 0.009, respectively). The SAP slope best threshold value of the ROC curve was - 4.4° from baseline. The only parameter found to be independently associated with fluid responsiveness among those included in the logistic regression was the slope for SAP (p = 0.009; odds ratio 0.27 (95% confidence interval (CI95) 0.10-0.70)). The effects produced by the sigh at 35 cmH20 (Sigh35) are significantly different between responders and non-responders. For a 35% reduction in PP from baseline, the AUC was 0.91 (CI95 0.82-0.99), with sensitivity 75.0% and specificity 91.6%. CONCLUSIONS: In a selected ICU population undergoing PSV, analysis of the slope for SAP after the application of three successive sighs and the nadir of PP after Sigh35 reliably predict fluid responsiveness. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12615001232527 . Registered on 10 November 2015.

Epidemiology and incidence of severe respiratory critical events in ear, nose and throat surgery in children in Europe: A prospective multicentre observational study.

BACKGROUND: Ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgery, the most frequently performed surgical procedure in children, is a strong predictor for peri-operative respiratory complications. However, there is no clear information about peri-operative respiratory severe critical events (SCEs) associated with anaesthesia management of ENT children in Europe. OBJECTIVE: To characterise the epidemiology and incidence of respiratory SCEs during and following ENT surgery in Europe and to identify the risk factors for their occurrence. DESIGN: A secondary analysis of the Anaesthesia PRactice In Children Observational Trial, a prospective observational multicentre cohort trial. SETTING: The study included 261 centres across 33 European countries and took place over a consecutive 2-week recruitment period between April 2014 and January 2015. PATIENTS: We extracted data from 5592 ENT surgical procedures that were performed on 5572 children aged 6.0 (3.6) years (mean (SD)) from the surgical database and compared these with data from 15 952 non-ENT surgical children aged 6.7 (4.8) years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was the incidence of respiratory SCEs (laryngospasm, bronchospasm and new onset of postoperative stridor). Secondary outcomes were the differences in epidemiology between ENT children and non-ENT surgical children and the risk factors for the occurrence of respiratory SCEs. RESULTS: The incidence (95% confidence interval) of any respiratory SCE (laryngospasm, bronchospasm and postoperative stridor) was 3.93% (3.46 to 4.48) and was significantly higher than that observed in non-ENT surgical children [2.61% (2.37 to 2.87)], with a relative risk of 1.51 (1.28 to 1.77), P less than 0.0001. Younger age (14% decrease in critical events by increasing year, P < 0.0001), history of snoring, recent upper respiratory tract infection and recent wheezing increased the risk of suffering a SCE by over two-fold (P < 0.0001). There was also some evidence for a positive association with age below 4.6 years and lower surgical volume thresholds (<20 cases/2 weeks). CONCLUSION: The results of this study provide additional evidence for strong associations between risk factors and respiratory SCEs in children having ENT surgery. These observations may facilitate the implementation of good clinical practice recommendations for ENT patients in Europe. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01878760.