title: Application of the upper lip catch test for airway evaluation in edentulous patients: An observational study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Application of upper lip catch test (ULCT) for airway evaluation in edentulous patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  This research is an evaluation of a clinical diagnostic test in edentulous patients prior to operation. Five hundred eighty eight edentulous patients in a referral university hospital, between March 2008 and June 2011 scheduled for elective surgery under general anesthesia were enrolled. Those unable to open the mouth and those with pharyngo-laryngeal pathology were excluded. ULCT was assessed and compared with Cormack-Lehane grading as a gold standard for airway evaluation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A high negative predictive value of 99.4% was a notable finding for the ULCT. The results also showed a high specificity (89.4%), high sensitivity (75.0%) and a high accuracy (89.3%) in a comparatively higher range for the ULCT.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The ULCT proved to be a useful predictor for airway assessment in edentulous patients in this setting. Further studies are needed to reconfirm its validity in other ethnic groups.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Imam Khomeini Medical Center, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Zahid Hussain
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Farabi Eye Hospital, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Shahriar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Arbabi
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mir Saeed
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Yekaninejad
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry, Azad Medical University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ramooz Hussain
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Khan
keywords: Airway; Cormack-Lehane grade; difficult intubation; modified Mallampati test; upper lip catch test