title: Assessment before airway management.
abstract: It is wise to plan and prepare for the unexpected difficult airway. Although it is essential to take a history and examine every patient prior to airway management, preoperative anticipation of a difficult airway occurs in only 50% of patients subsequently found to have a difficult airway. Bedside screening tests lack accuracy. The modified Mallampati test and the measurement of thyromental distance are unreliable for prediction of difficult tracheal intubation. Knowledge of risk factors for various airway management techniques may help when devising an airway management plan.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaesthesiology, University of Auckland, Level 12, Room 081, Auckland Support Building 599, Park Road, Grafton, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand. Electronic address: paul@airwayskills.co.nz.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Baker
mesh_terms: D058109:Airway Management; D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D007442:Intubation, Intratracheal; D007828:Laryngoscopy; D009333:Neck; D010808:Physical Examination; D000067716:Point-of-Care Testing; D012307:Risk Factors; D014132:Trachea
keywords: Airway; Airway management; Assessment; Intubation; Laryngoscopy; Techniques; Tracheal