Comparison of Parker-tipped and Murphy-tipped tracheal tubes in Airway Scope-assisted intubation in a manikin.

PURPOSE: We tested our hypothesis that a Parker-tipped tracheal tube could improve the reliability of tracheal tube passage as compared to a Murphy-tipped tracheal tube during Airway Scope-assisted intubation in a manikin.

METHODS

Twenty-seven resident doctors performed Airway Scope-assisted intubations using both tracheal tubes, and the number of times the tracheal tube tip touched the glottis or other laryngeal structures was counted on the Airway Scope monitor.

RESULTS

The incidence of the tracheal tube tip touching the glottis during Airway Scope-assisted intubation using the Parker-tipped tracheal tube (7.4%; 2 of 27 attempts) was significantly less than that obtained using the Murphy-tipped tracheal tube (33.3%; 9 of 27 attempts; P = 0.039).

CONCLUSION

When the advancement of a conventional tracheal tube during Airway Scope-assisted intubation is likely to result in collision with the glottis or other laryngeal structures, the selection of a Parker-tipped tracheal tube is a better option.