• A Thierbach, T Piepho, B Wolcke, S Küster, and W Dick.
• Klinik für Anästhesiologie, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität, Mainz. Thierbach@uni-mainz.de
• Anaesthesist. 2004 Jun 1;53(6):543-50.

BackgroundOxygenation and ventilation as well as prevention of aspiration are of vital importance for emergency patients. Prehospital airway management is not comparable to clinical anaesthesia. However, prehospital data of the occurrence of potential life-threatening complications and less severe adverse events of airway management procedures by emergency physicians are not yet available.MethodsAll airway management procedures predominantly performed by emergency physicians over a period of 36 months were recorded prospectively.ResultsData of 598 consecutive patients were collected, in all patients prehospital airway management could be accomplished successfully. Of the patients 98.5% were successfully intubated endotracheally with a maximum of 3 attempts, 84.6% of patients were intubated at the first attempt, and in 9 patients other techniques such as the Combitube were required. In more than 80% of procedures, no complications or adverse events were recorded and potentially life-threatening complications occurred in 9% of patients only.ConclusionsPrehospital airway management by emergency physicians experienced in anaesthesia is associated with low complication and high success rates.

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