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Pocus Use For Emergency Airway Management In Rural Emergency Departments, Margaret Downing

Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies Capstone Presentations (Center City)

Introduction

- Preparation and accurate prediction of difficult airways in emergent situations is necessary for successful first pass intubation

- Current methods for airway assessments require patient cooperation and may vary by provider

• Mallampati score: open mouth, protrude tongue, see what structures are visible³
• LEMON criteria: look externally, evaluate 3-3-2 rule, Mallampati score, obstruction, neck mobility
• Thyromental distance: measure thyroid cartilage to tip of chin with neck extended³

- Difficult airways have successful first pass intubation only 82.2% of the time (vs 92.4% for non-difficult airways)⁶

- Adverse effects occurred in 14.2% of patients with successful first …