Evolution of Inexpensive Videolaryngoscopy
prehospitalmed.comNot many procedures in Medicine have received the attention and focus of medical practice, especially in critical care, as laryngoscopy. A secure airway serves as a lifeline to the critically ill, yet the process of securing it remains at times enigmatic, more of an art than a science.
Inability to secure the airway or airway related critical incidents remains a cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitals globally.
Not every physician or healthcare provider may have the training or the tools they need to achieve a high degree of competence.
But why is this procedure fraught with difficulties, with dangers lurking around the corner?
Well, it depends on that corner which we need to look around! During laryngoscopy our visual axis is not aligned with the axis of the laryngeal structures.
Our vision needs to traverse the near 90-degree turn of the base of the tongue, in order to view the larynx.