Background
Laryngeal masks have been widely used in clinical practice. However, the placement of the laryngeal mask may lead to misalignment of the laryngeal mask or complications such as pharyngeal pain and bleeding. Laryngoscope-guided laryngeal mask placement can improve the alignment of the laryngeal mask and reduce the incidence of complications. However, due to the structural characteristics of the laryngoscope, the laryngeal mask placement cannot achieve a perfect effect. Designing a visual laryngoscope for laryngeal mask placement to improve the success rate of laryngeal mask placement is an important problem in clinical practice.
Methods
44 junior anesthesiologists participated in this study. They were divided into two groups according to the computer-generated random number table. The LMA was inserted into an airway manikin in a blind fashion (blind group) or under visualization with the video laryngoscope-guided group (VL group). The success rate of laryngeal mask placement, insertion time, fiberoptic classification, times of manual optimization, and difficulty of placement were recorded.
Results
The LMA was successfully inserted in all participants. The success rate of laryngeal mask placement in the VL group was higher than that in the L group (94% vs 65%, p = 0.025). The insertion time (33.76 ± 4.78 vs 45.06 ± 6.27, p < 0.001) and the times of manual optimization of the laryngeal mask (9% vs 36%, p = 0.031) in the video laryngoscope-guided group were lower than in the blind group. The VL group has a higher fiberoptic classification (p = 0.026).
Conclusion
These findings suggest that the improved video laryngoscope is easy to operate, which can increase the success rate of laryngeal mask implantation, shorten the insertion time, reduce the number of adjustments and have a higher optical fiber score.