Emergency airway--a plan of action.

Abstract

An orderly plan of action for correcting the occasional critical airway obstruction is essential; otherwise irreversible brain damage and even death may occur before effective action is taken. A safe, simple, and effective plan has been developed for restoring ventilation in critical airway emergencies. The four basic steps are: recognition of obstruction; nonsurgical maneuvers to relieve obstruction; mouth-to-mouth breathing to overcome obstruction or to diagnose persistent obstruction; and establishment of emergency surgical airway. Cricothyroid membrane puncture is the safest and simplest method for establishing a satisfactory airway under adverse and serious conditions.