Have you ever been in the operating room for a routine elective case, but the intubation was anything but routine? Did you have to use a video laryngoscope (VL) or some other device, call for help, abandon the case, or perform an emergency cricothyroidotomy?
Unfortunately, this sort of thing happens every day in every part of the world — and the vast majority do not have a video laryngoscope to help obtain an airway. In some of those situations, patients can suffer severe complications and die.
At Adroit Surgical, our team is always expecting the unexpected. Demo our Vie Scope® and read through two cases where a Vie Scope® was able to assist during difficult airway management situations.
Two Difficult Airway Management Cases
The two cases described here are of patients that were thought to be straightforward intubations for elective surgery. They were not with other devices, including a video laryngoscope, but the airway was easily secured using the Vie Scope®.
Both of these unanticipated difficult airways occurred in a hospital in Europe.
Case 1: Difficult Intubation
A non-obese patient with no pre-screening concerns for difficult intubation. The anesthesiologist was unable to visualize the larynx using the Macintosh blade.
With the Vie Scope®, a grade one or POGO 100% was obtained.
Case 2: Difficult Intubation
An obese patient with a limited mouth opening did not allow any view of the larynx using the Macintosh blade. The McGrath video laryngoscope revealed a CL scale 2 view. The Vie Scope® obtained a grade CL 1/POGO 100% view and the patient was safely intubated.
Using the Vie Scope®
Our team designed the Vie Scope® as a battery-operated, single-use intubation tool. While you can never be over-prepared for intubation, there are some instances where even a video laryngoscope does not help. That’s where our portable, disposable scope comes into play.
The Vie Scope® is designed as a closed circular tube with a beveled end to better visualize the vocal cords. Using the ring of LED lights on the Vie Scope®, you can easily see the target tissue and insert the Voir Bougie® or any bougie — even if there are secretions of blood blocking the airway. From there, you’ll be able to pass the endotracheal tube over the bougie and remove the bougie, successfully intubating the patient.
Get Airway Management Support From Adroit Surgical
What’s in your pocket? When it comes to emergency situations, both inside and outside of the hospital, be prepared when you have our Vie Scope® in your pocket. In addition, we’ve designed a Tactical Bougie® to easily fit in the pocket of EMS professionals so they can always have a scope and bougie in emergency situations.
Want to learn more about our Vie Scope® for airway management? Schedule a free virtual demo from Adroit Surgical today. You can also watch our selection of training videos to see our intubation equipment in action.