Instrument for endotracheal anesthesia during oropharyngeal surgery.

Abstract

It has always been important to maintain an adequate airway during any general anesthetic, especially for any type of oral surgery performed under general anesthesia. With the increasing use of intravenous administration of anesthetics, it is even more vital. Attempts have been made in the past to perform operations such as tonsillectomy on adults by using endotracheal intubation, but the surgeon usually found that the tube obstructed the operating field or tended to slip out of the glottis. It is the purpose of this report to describe a new endotracheal tongue blade, which is adaptable to either the Crowe-Davis or the McIvor mouth gag and which affords greater safety and better exposure. DESCRIPTION The stainless steel tongue blade is pictured in figure 1 and is constructed in three sizes to pass a no. 24 French, 28 French, and a 38 French endotracheal tube. These can be used for a small