Comparison of direct and video laryngoscopes in charcoal ingestion setting: a randomized cross-over simulation study

Abstract

Choosing the right intubation method to increase the success rate and performing it quickly is very important in a difficult airway situation. We aimed to compare the endotracheal intubation success rates and completion time when using direct laryngoscopes (DL) and GlideScope video laryngoscopes (GVL) in an activated charcoal ingestion manikin simulation. This study was designed as a randomized cross over study in an activated charcoal ingestion simulated model. Physicians who had >30 successful endotracheal intubation (ETI) experiences participated in this study. The end points were successful ETI and the duration of ETI completion. In order to compare the degree of intubation difficulty, the participants rated the visual analog scale (VAS). A total of 38 people participated in this study. The success rate of the first attempt was 28/38 (73.7%) for DL and 37/38 (97.4%) for GVL (p < 0.01). The estimated duration to successful ETI were 45.5 s (26–69) for DL and 28 s (23–35) for GVL, respectively (p < 0.01). VAS score for the difficulty of intubation was lower in GVL than DL (p < 0.01). Using GVL had higher first pass success rate and was faster and easier than DL when intubating patients with activated charcoal ingestion in a simulated situation.