RESPIRATION AND THE AIRWAY Tracheal intubation of morbidly obese patients: a randomized

Background. The AirtraqTM laryngoscope is designed to allow visualization of the glottis without alignment of the oral, pharyngeal, and laryngeal axes. We hypothesized that this new airway device would facilitate tracheal intubation of morbidly obese patients. We compared tra-cheal intubation performance of standard Macintosh laryngoscope with the AirtraqTM laryngo-scope in morbidly obese patients. Methods. One hundred and six consecutive ASA I–III morbidly obese patients undergoing surgery were randomized to intubation with the Macintosh laryngoscope or the AirtraqTM laryngoscope. Induction of anaesthesia was standardized. If tracheal intubation failed within 120 s with the Macintosh or AirtraqTM, laryngoscopes were switched. Success rate, SpO2, duration of tracheal intubation, and quality of airway management were evaluated and com-pared between the groups. Results. Preoperative characteristics of the patients were similar in both groups. In the AirtraqTM group, tracheal intubation was successfully carried out in all patients within 120 s. In the Macintosh laryngoscope group, six patients required intubation with the AirtraqTM laryn-goscope. The mean (SD) time taken for tracheal intubation was 24 (16) and 56 (23) s, respect