Analysis of the 3D printing open-source video laryngoscope for orotracheal intubation

Abstract

Introduction Orotracheal intubation becomes a challenge for the anesthesiologist when the glottis is not visualized with direct laryngoscopy. Videolaryngoscopes emerged as an alternative in these situations, but the costs of these devices restrict their popularization. Doubts remain as to whether low-cost devices would be safe and effective, such as the 3D printing Open-Source video laryngoscope. Aim To analyze the 3D printing Open-Source video laryngoscope for orotracheal intubation for general anesthesia in its the rate of achieving, glottis visualization time, intubation time and its correlation with the order of execution. Methods Clinical, prospective, analytical study of a questionnaire carried out after the procedure. Statistical analysis was performed using Spearman’s correlation, Kruskal-Wallis test, and chi-square test. Results There was a total of 64 uncomplicated orotracheal intubation procedures with an overall success rate of 93.8%. Mean time for viewing the glottis (16.4”), mean times of endotracheal intubation with Mallampati I (26.5”), ll (33.7”), lll (57.3”), lV (38.5”) were obtained with no statistical significance (P 0.170) and overall mean time of orotracheal intubation (36.4”) with a moderate negative correlation of –0.36 across the orotracheal intubation execution order. Conclusion In the analysis of endotracheal intubation with the 3D printing Open-Source video laryngoscope a high success rate was demonstrated without any complications. The time to obtain endotracheal intubation tends to reduce with subsequent experiences and learning, but it is more than twice the time required to adequately visualize the glottis and the Mallampati classification was not a relevant time predictor. Keywords Orotracheal intubation; Videolaryngoscopy, Airway management