Ultrasound for predicting difficult airway in obstetric anesthesia

DIffIcUlt aIrway IN ObstEtrIc aNEsthEsIa

Received for publication: Dec 8, 2005. Revised: Apr. 11, 2006. rEZUMat Director, Obstetric Anesthesia, Department of Anesthesiology, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, USA

Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of the Difficult Airway in Obstetric Anesthesia

The purpose of this review is to discuss clinical practice guidelines for the management of the difficult airway in obstetric anesthesia. In the obstetric population, most anesthetic-related maternal deaths still result from complications of airway management following induction of general anesthesia for cesarean delivery (1-4). Airway management in pregnant patients is widely accepted as being...

Challenges of Obstetric Anesthesia: Difficult Laryngeal Visualization.

Obstetric anesthesia is one of the high risk subspecialties of anesthesia practice. Anesthesia related complications are the sixth leading cause of maternal mortality. Difficult or failed intubation following induction of general anesthesia for CS remains the major contributory factor to anesthesia-related maternal complications. The airway management of obstetric patients is a challenging issu...

The difficult airway in office-based anesthesia.

The skills required to anticipate and manage a difficult airway are very important skills that the anesthesia provider must possess. However, it is axiomatic that the night before surgery, the patient was breathing room air unassisted by any devices. (Note that this discussion excludes the sleep apnea patient who requires a continuous positive airway pressure device.) It is therefore anesthesia...

Obstetric difficult airway guidelines - decision-making in critical situations.