August 1, 1995Anesthesia & Analgesia
Predicting Difficult Endotracheal Intubation in Surgical Patients Scheduled for General Anesthesia
Why the study?
Does preoperative evaluation of anatomic features predict difficult endotracheal intubation in adults presenting for elective surgery?
Population
471 adults presenting for elective surgery
Design
Cohort, blind study (different observer at laryngoscopy)
Authors
Discussion
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Implication
Negative results may identify likely easy intubation in elective cases; leaves open need for prospective validation of better predictors.
Structured PICO
Does preoperative evaluation of anatomic features predict difficult endotracheal intubation in adults presenting for elective surgery?
P
Population
471 adults presenting for elective surgery
I
Intervention
Preoperative evaluation of anatomic features of the head (Mallampati classification, thyromental distance, head extension)
O
Outcome
Difficulty in visualizing the larynx at laryngoscopy
Preoperative anatomic measurements (Mallampati, thyromental distance, head extension) have low sensitivity for predicting difficult intubation but are useful for predicting an easy intubation when results are negative.
Cite This Study
Tse et al. (1995) studied this question.