Biomechanical evaluation of the phases during simulated Endotracheal Intubation (ETI): Pilot study on the effect of different laryngoscopes

Abstract

Endotracheal Intubation (ETI) is a common airway procedure used to connect the larynx and the lungs through a windpipe in patients under emergency situations. The process is carried out by a laryngoscope inserted into the mouth, used to help doctors in visualizing the glottis and inserting the tube. Currently, very few studies on objective evaluation of the biomechanics of the doctors during the procedure have been done. Additionally, these studies have been concentrated only on the overall performance analysis, without any segmentation, with a consequent loss of important information. In this paper, the authors present a preliminary study on a methodology to objectively evaluate and segment the biomechanical performance of doctors during the ETI, using surface electromyography and inertial measurement units. In particular, the validation has been performed by comparing three kinds of laryngoscopes involving an expert doctor. Finally, results are presented and commented.

Autonomous Intubation Robot System based on Visual Servoing and Hybrid Control

“…The different ergonomic designs will produce different user experiences. [11] Such design also has important influences on the pressure exerted on patients by adjusting the size of the contact surface area and the force required to expose epiglottis. [12] Although, with the advantages of being cheaper and easier to sterilize, the traditional laryngoscopes usually require greater force to expose the epiglottis for no visual guidance, which may cause damages on patients' mouth tissue and epiglottis.…”

Development of new muscle contraction sensor to replace sEMG for using in muscles analysis fields

“…In particular surface electromyography (sEMG), a technique for evaluating and recording the electrical activity produced by skeletal muscles, has been more and more employed in a variety of fields, for many different applications. For example, in Neurophysiological and medical research, sEMG, coupled with Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), has been used to objectively analyze and quantify the movement differences between novice and experts doctors, in tasks like laparoscopic surgery, as a method for objective skill evaluation [1] [2] [3]. In the sport and physiotherapy fields, sEMG is used to monitor the effectiveness of strength or endurance training or sport injury rehabilitation [4] [5].…”