[Difficult intubation in paediatric cardiac surgery. Significance of age. Association with Down's syndrome].
OBJECTIVE
To assess the relationship between the age of pediatric patients and the likelihood of difficult intubations and to confirm the importance of Down Syndrome causing difficult intubations.


METHODS
Retrospective study.


METHODS
Pediatric cardiac surgery operating room.


METHODS
627 pediatric patients, suffering from congenital heart disease, operated in our hospital from 1992 to 1994, divided in three age groups (under 1 month, between 1 month and 1 year, over 1 year of age).


METHODS
Translaryngeal intubation performed in the operating room before the operation.


METHODS
The percentage of difficult intubations was assessed in the three age groups and the association with Down syndrome was also considered. The likelihood of orotracheal intubations in each of the preceding groups was also examined.


CONCLUSIONS
The percentage of difficult intubation in our experience was estimated to be 4.62%. Intubation's difficulty increases with decreasing age of non Down patients. The risk of difficult intubation in Down patients is, irrespectively of age, nearly 27% higher than in non-Downs (5.77% versus 4.52). However Down Syndrome seems to be important only in the age group between one month and one year. The percentage of orotracheal intubations in the preceding groups, even if indirectly, seem to confirm this observation.
Bevilacqua
S
S
Ospedale G. Pasquinucci, Massa.
Nicolini
A
A
Del Sarto
P
P
Genovesi
M
M
Moschetti
R
R
Scebba
L
L
Santoli
F
F
D000367:Age Factors; D000768:Anesthesia, General; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000150:complications; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007442:Intubation, Intratracheal; D012189:Retrospective Studies