Current practice pattern among anaesthesiologists for difficult airway management: A nationwide cross-sectional survey

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The practice patterns for airway management vary among anaesthesiologists, depending on various setups and geographical divides. This survey assessed practice patterns in unanticipated difficult intubation and cannot intubate or cannot ventilate (CICV) situations/complete ventilation failure among Indian anaesthesiologists’. METHODS: A validated questionnaire of 22 items related to practice preferences for airway management among anaesthesiologists was sent to Indian Society of Anaesthesiologists members online through Google Forms and distributed manually to delegates in continuing medical education programme. RESULTS: A total of 535 responses were obtained and analysed. In unanticipated difficult laryngoscopy and intubation, the order of preference for alternative airway devices was video laryngoscope (VL, 60.1%), intubating laryngeal mask airway/laryngeal mask airway (23.5%), fibreoptic bronchoscope (13.5%) and optical stylets (1.2%). Advanced difficult airway devices were unavailable in most nursing homes and government non-teaching hospitals. Seventy per cent of respondents experienced CICV situations at least once, most during head and neck surgeries. In CICV situations, the order of choice for the front-of-neck airway access was cricothyroidotomy (CT) by narrow bore cannula (48.9%), tracheostomy by the surgeon (30%), Seldinger CT (12.5%), open surgical CT (5.4%) and scalpel bougie CT (3.2%). CONCLUSION: The VL was the most preferred airway rescue device in unanticipated difficult intubation, and intravenous catheter cricothyroidotomy was the most selected technique in CICV situations.