J Am Assoc Lab Anim
-
J Am Assoc Lab Anim · Nov 2009
Minimizing trauma to the upper airway: a ferret model of neonatal intubation.
Our objective was to determine whether an adult ferret can be intubated as many as 10 times per training session without resulting in trauma to the upper airway. In this program, 8 male ferrets rotated through intubation laboratories, limiting the use of each animal to once every 3 mo. Animals were examined by the veterinary staff after intubations to assess for trauma to upper airway tissue. ⋯ This ongoing training program has been used to teach neonatal intubation skills to emergency medicine residents for the past 12 mo. Ensuring the health and safety of the ferrets was paramount. Our results suggest that as many as 10 intubation attempts per session can be performed safely on each ferret without causing excessive trauma.