Observational analysis of criteria for a difficult airway alert

Abstract

Introduction: Difficult airway alerts are a tool used to document difficulties encountered with the patient’s airway and assist with future management. There is no universally accepted criterion as to who should get a difficult airway alert and the indication for these alerts may be changing with the proliferation of videolaryngoscopes. The purpose of this study was to characterize the airway events that were encountered in patients who had been assigned a difficult airway alert by staff anesthesiologists. Methods: This retrospective study analyzed the airway details of patients who were assigned a difficult airway letter at an academic teaching institution between November 2011 and January 2016. Electronic records of intraoperative airway management and difficult airway letters were reviewed for the methods used, difficulties encountered, and what recommendations were provided for future airway management. Results: A cohort of 107 adult patients (62 males and 45 females) issued difficult airway letters identified for analysis. The mean age (SD) of the cohort was 57 (±13) years, and the mean body mass index was 31 (±7) kg/m2. Direct laryngoscopy failed in 68 of 89 cases, with 77 reported grade III views and 9 grade IV views. Videolaryngoscopy (VL) was used successfully in 63 cases, with 8 documented VL failures. Ten patients were intubated awake with a flexible bronchoscope (FB), and 6 cases were managed using an asleep FB technique. The most common methods suggested for future airway management were VL (57 cases) or either awake or asleep FB (31 cases). Conclusions: Patients with difficult direct laryngoscopy were predominant in this cohort who were assigned a difficult airway alert. Many of the difficult airways were successfully managed using VL, however, FB was required in some cases. Staff preferentially recommended VL over flexible bronchoscopy for future management of the known difficult airway.