Airway & cervical spine protection

Airway & cervical spine

Verbal response: Salam! How are you? Airway is compromised if:

• No response- unconscious , GCS <8,

• Noisy breathing

• Severe facial trauma

• Oropharyngeal bleeding or foreign body

• Patient agitated - ?hypoxia

• Adequacy of airway- completed within seconds

• Open the front of the collar for airway manipulation

• Maintain manual inline stabilization of C spine by an assistant. Avoid excessive movement of C spine.

• Oropharyngeal airway/ bag valve mask ventilation

• O₂ supplement + pulse oximetry- every trauma patient

• Rapid-sequence endotracheal intubation (ETT)

• Frequent reassessment for airway compromise

Difficult airway

Surgical airway when oral intubation (ETT) cannot be accomplished:

• Cricothyroidotomy: Surgical placing a tube through incision in the cricothyroid membrane (CTM)
• Tracheostomy (laryngeal injury)