title: A comparison of the oropharyngeal leak pressure between the reusable Classic laryngeal mask airway and the single-use Soft Seal laryngeal mask airway.
abstract: We tested the oropharyngeal leak pressure with the reusable laryngeal mask airway and the single-use Soft Seal laryngeal mask airway. These two types of laryngeal mask airway (LMA) have a similar design but the reusable LMA cuff is made from silicone whereas the Soft Seal LMA cuff is polyvinylchloride. Thirty-five healthy subjects were anaesthetized and paralyzed and the two types of Soft Seal LMA were compared in a blinded randomized cross-over trial. The oropharyngeal leak pressure was significantly higher with the Soft Seal than the reuable (21 +/- 7.6 and 16 +/- 6.7 cm H2O respectively, P = 0.002). However, in four subjects the oropharyngeal leak pressure was higher with the reusable by > 4 cm H2O. We concluded that the reusable LMA may provide a better seal in some individuals but that, on average, the Soft Seal provides a higher oropharyngeal leak pressure than the reusable LMA.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaesthetics, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Hanning
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: McCulloch
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Orr
authors.forename: S P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Anderson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000768:Anesthesia, General / Q000379:methods; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017214:Laryngeal Masks; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009960:Oropharynx / Q000502:physiology*; D011143:Polyvinyl Chloride; D011312:Pressure; D012016:Reference Values; D012828:Silicones; D016037:Single-Blind Method
chemical_list: D012828:Silicones; D011143:Polyvinyl Chloride