Background: The McIvor blade, a tongue retractor with a thin curved blade, is used to improve the operating field during a tonsillectomy. We compared the success rate and incidence of complications between digital insertion and McIvor blade-guided insertion of the laryngeal mask airway (LMA™) ProSeal™ when performed by anesthesia residents in children.
Methods: A total of 134 anesthetized non-paralyzed pediatric patients were included in the study. Patients were allocated randomly to one of two groups, i.e., Digital group (LMA ProSeal insertion using the digital insertion technique) or McIvor group (LMA ProSeal insertion using the Mclvor blade-guided technique). All patients were managed by anesthesia residents who were unskilled in using each technique. We assessed success rates of insertion at the first attempt, insertion time for an effective airway, and postoperative blood staining.
Results: The success rate of insertion at the first attempt was higher in the McIvor group than in the Digital group (97% vs 78%, respectively; P = 0.003), and insertion time with a successful first attempt was shorter in the McIvor group than in the Digital group (20.5 [4.5] sec vs 22.8 [6.7] sec, respectively; P = 0.021). The overall insertion time for an effective airway was also shorter in the McIvor group than in the Digital group (20.9 [5.7] sec vs 26.0 [9.8] sec, respectively; P < 0.001). Blood staining was more frequent in the Digital group than in the McIvor group (23% vs 6%, respectively; P = 0.035).
Conclusion: When inserting the LMA ProSeal in children, anesthesia residents were more successful using the McIvor blade-guided insertion technique than using the digital insertion technique. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01191619).