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Continuing Education in Anaesthesia, Critical Care & Pain 2006 6(1):28-31; doi:10.1093/bjaceaccp/mki060
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Continuing Education in Anaesthesia, Critical Care & Pain | Volume 6 Number 1 2006 © The Board of Management and Trustees of the British Journal of Anaesthesia [2006]. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Anaesthesia for airway surgery

James English, FRCA, Specialist Registrar
Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, UK

Andrew Norris, FRCA, Consultant
Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, UK

Nigel Bedforth, FRCA, Consultant
Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, UK
Nigel Bedforth, Department of Anaesthesia, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham NG2 7UH 01159249924 ext 41195 Fax: 01159783891 Email: nigel.bedforth@mail.qmcuh-tr.trent.nhs.uk (for correspondence)

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.


Key points

Airway surgery requires a high degree of cooperation between anaesthetist and surgeon.

The choice of anaesthetic technique is dictated by the experience of the anaesthetist.

Patients presenting for airway surgery frequently have coexisting medical problems (often smoking-related); they may require optimization before surgery.

In the presence of acute-onset stridor, investigations should be kept to a minimum.

Emergency airway interventions should only be undertaken with an experienced ENT surgeon present.

 

Airway surgery demands a high level of cooperation between surgical and anaesthetic teams. This article discusses anaesthesia for some common airway procedures and paediatric airway problems. In addition to facilitating surgery through providing an unobstructed and immobile operative field, anaesthetists must provide oxygenation, carbon dioxide elimination, adequate anaesthesia, and a rapid return of consciousness and airway reflexes after surgery.


   General considerations
 
Evaluation of the location, size, extent, and mobility of any lesion is required. The effects on laryngeal function and airway . . . [Full Text of this Article]


   Ventilatory techniques
 
Spontaneous ventilation with topical anaesthesia ± sedation

Spontaneous respiration with general anaesthesia

Intermittent, positive-pressure ventilation

Low-frequency jet ventilation (LFJV)

High-frequency jet ventilation (HFJV)


   Specific surgical procedures
 
Direct laryngoscopy

Fibre-optic bronchoscopy

Rigid bronchoscopy

Foreign body removal

Tracheostomy

Laser surgery

Airway trauma

Tracheal resection


   Postoperative care
 

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