Background: Endotracheal intubation is considered a criterion standard for securing the airway during cardiopulmonary resuscitation, yet it requires a very skillful operator. The aim of the study was to investigate whether paramedic staff can successfully use the Pentax Airway Scope AWS-S200 video laryngoscope (AWS) for intubating with 3 simulated airway scenarios.
Methods: It was a randomized nonblinded crossover simulation trial. Fifty-four paramedics performed intubation using an AWS in a manikin, with 3 airway scenarios: scenario A, normal airway; scenario B, normal airway with chest compression (CC); and scenario C, difficult airway with CC.
Results: Median intubation times for the AWS during scenarios A, B, and C were 20 seconds (interquartile range [IQR], 19-23 seconds), 22 seconds (IQR, 20-25 seconds), and 26 seconds (IQR, 23-29 seconds), respectively, and the respective overall success rates of intubation were 100%, 100%, and 94.4%.
Conclusion: In this manikin study, paramedics could successfully intubate using the AWS, regardless of CCs being interrupted or not, even when a patient's airway was difficult.
Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Inc.