Two-Person Technique for Fiberscope-Aided Tracheal Intubation in a Patient with a Long and Narrow Retropharyngeal Air Space

Abstract

he fiberoptic bronchoscope (FOB) is useful fordifficult tracheal intubations (1). However, fiber-scope-aided tracheal intubation becomes diffi-cult in the presence of significant amounts of blood orvarious types of secretions. Furthermore, it is some-times difficult to locate the glottis with the fiberscopebecause of a large, floppy epiglottis, which obstructsthe laryngeal inlet. We report a simple and usefulintubation technique that uses the FOB and conven-tional laryngoscope, which facilitated tracheal intuba-tion in a patient who had unanticipated difficultintubation.