Strategies and algorithms for management of the difficult airway

Abstract

Management of the difficult airway is the most important patient safety issue in the practice of anaesthesia. Many national societies have developed algorithms and guidelines for management of the difficult airway. The key issues of this chapter are definition of terms, the advantages and disadvantages of the use of guidelines, and a comparison of different algorithms and guidelines for management of the most important clinical airway scenarios. Although there is no strong evidence of benefit for any specific strategy or algorithm for management of the difficult airway, there is strong agreement that a pre-planned strategy may lead to improved outcome.