Aspiration during emergency intubation in the emergency department: A review

Abstract

Endotracheal intubation is considered the gold standard airway management in the Emergency department (ED) for patients requiring definitive airway. It is one of the most commonly performed invasive procedures in the ED. Due to limited time for preparation, unstable condition of the patient, and urgency of the situation, it is always considered a high-risk procedure. The risk of aspiration is high in patients with low sensorium while the intubation process itself is associated with an increased risk of aspiration. It is therefore important to take preventive steps and recognize early signs of aspiration as treatment is difficult and could prolong and complicate hospital stay. Until a gold standard definition and a reliable diagnostic marker for aspiration pneumonia (AP) is available, it would always be a challenging task for clinicians to diagnose AP.