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Minerva Anestesiologica 2014 January;80(1):76-82

Copyright © 2014 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Videolaryngoscopes in pediatric anesthesia: what’s new?

Fiadjoe J. E. ¹, Kovatsis P. ² ✉

¹ Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; ² Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine,Children’s Hospital of Boston,Harvard School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA

Anesthesiologists are increasingly turning to videolaryngoscopes (VLs) for normal and difficult endotracheal intubations. As children grow the airway is in constant transition. This means that a device that works well in an older child may fail in an infant. Are VLs ideal in all children? What are the pitfalls and strengths of these devices? When are they indicated? How should their efficacy be assessed? Can they play a role in teaching standard laryngoscopy? This article explores these questions and reviews the literature relating to VLs use in children.