When using the laryngeal tube and the intubating laryngeal mask airway (ILMA), the medium-size (maximum volume 1100 ml) versus adult (maximum volume 1500 ml) self-inflating bags resulted in significantly lower lung tidal volumes. No gastric inflation occurred when using both devices with either ventilation bag. The newly developed medium-size self-inflating bag may be an option to further reduc...

For acute respiratory distress or arrest, endotracheal intubation is a life-saving procedure in emergency airway management. There are many possible complications that may present with manipulation of the airway. This case will discuss factors that one may consider when adequate oxygenation or ventilation is not achieved after an endotracheal tube (ETT) is placed. Issues that can lead to diffic...

BACKGROUND Volume-controlled ventilation has been suggested to optimize lung deposition during nebulization although promoting spontaneous ventilation is targeted to avoid ventilator-induced diaphragmatic dysfunction. Comparing topographic aerosol lung deposition during volume-controlled ventilation and spontaneous ventilation in pressure support has never been performed. The aim of this study ...

We describe the use of an endoscopy face mask with a perforated membrane, which allows a nasogastric tube for continuous noninvasive ventilation in acute hypercapnic respiratory failure, in 2 patients who developed gastric distention. This interface was able to avoid most nonintentional leaks through the mask, as compared with a conventional approach, improving ventilation efficiency. To our k...

Differential lung ventilation to achieve optimised ventilation for each lung is a procedure rarely used in the intensive care unit, to treat select cases of severe unilateral lung disease in intensive care. However, existing techniques both for securing the airway and ventilating the lungs are challenging and have complications. We present the use of differential lung ventilation in the intensi...

BACKGROUND The Laryngeal Tube Sonda (LTS) is a supraglottic airway which, like the ProSeal Laryngeal Mask Airway (PLMA), incorporates a drain tube. We compared the performances of LTS and PLMA during controlled ventilation anaesthesia. METHODS The devices were studied in 32 ventilated patients by randomized crossover trial. Primary outcome was airway seal pressure. Secondary outcomes included...

BACKGROUND Little information is available about the accuracy of the teeth mark on the laryngeal tube (LT) as a guide to correct placement in children. The aim of this crossover study was to evaluate three methods for optimal insertion depth of the size (#) 2 tube in children weighing 12-25 kg. METHOD In 24 children, the LT #2 was consecutively inserted by three different methods: (A) until t...

Following the use of an endotracheal or tracheostomy tube, circumferential lesions, stenosis, or granulomatous lesions at the cuff level or tip of the tube may be observed on the tracheal wall. This injury mainly occurs due to excessive pressure of the cuff on the tracheal wall and may be prevented by a high-volume, low-pressure cuff and a carefully monitored tracheostomy tube. Although there i...

Mechanical ventilation in patients with bronchopleural fistula after lung resection is a major problem, as it causes increase of the air-leak, complicates the healing process and makes residual lung tissue ventilation difficult. We present two cases in which the use of a modified double lumen endobronchial tube improved ventilation and eliminated the fistula air-leak. We used a right-sided doub...

OBJECTIVES Bacterial infections in the normally sterile environment of the middle ear cavity usually trigger host immune response, whereby the innate immune system plays a dominant role as the host's first line of defense. We evaluated the expression levels of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) -2, -4, -5, -9, and nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-containing proteins (NODs) -1 and -2, all of wh...