[Single-use laryngoscope blade assessment]

Ann Fr Anesth Reanim. 2004 Jul;23(7):694-9. doi: 10.1016/j.annfar.2004.03.017.
[Article in French]

Abstract

Objectives: To assess the feasibility of switching disposable laryngoscope blades and to compare the disposable blades available on the market to reusable blades within the context of a new variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

Study design: Comparative prospective study.

Material and methods: Study conducted on patients intubated for surgical procedures in all operating theatres of a university hospital. The anaesthetic practitioner filled in an assessment form giving a score on nine criteria for each blade used. Data were recorded on Epi Info software. Satisfaction scores of each criterion were compared for both disposable blades and reusable blades.

Results: Six brands of blades were tested with 225 blades. Disposable blades were evaluated as inferior to the reusable blades in 62% of cases. Two blades were reported as more satisfactory: the 670166 Rusch-Pilling and Vital View blades.

Conclusion: The disposable blades were not easily accepted by the anaesthetists particularly for difficult intubations, which is why reusable blades should not be totally removed from practice. Single-use blades proposed by different manufacturers are not identical. We chose 670166 Rusch-Pilling blades, the best adapted to our institution. The switch to disposable blades would require that blade manufacturers improve the quality of the blades.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study

MeSH terms

  • Anesthesia, Inhalation
  • Creutzfeldt-Jakob Syndrome / diagnosis
  • Humans
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Intubation, Intratracheal
  • Laryngoscopes* / standards*
  • Prospective Studies