Comparison of Suction Rates Between a Standard Yankauer, a Commercial Large-Bore Suction Device, and a Makeshift Large-Bore Suction Device

Background: Commercial large-bore suction catheters and makeshift large-bore suction catheters with an endotracheal tube (ETT) attached to a meconium aspirator have been shown to have superior suction rates compared with a standard Yankauer.

Objectives: To compare suction rates between a commercial large-bore suction catheter and a makeshift endotracheal tube-meconium aspirator (ETTMA) combination.

Methods: We measured suction rates between a standard bulb-tip Yankauer catheter (Model: K86; Cardinal Health, Waukegan, IL), a commercial large-bore catheter (Part: 43200; The Big Stick®, SSCOR, Inc., Sun Valley, CA), and an 8.0-mm standard ETT connected to a meconium aspirator (NeotechTM Products, Inc., Valencia, CA; Ref: N0101 Clear) with high-, medium-, and low-viscosity fluids. Median suction rates were calculated with interquartile ranges. The relative differences with 95% confidence intervals (CI) between the Yankauer and both the large-bore catheter and the ETTMA combination were calculated using a linear mixed-effects model.

Results: Each device was trialed five times with each of the three different viscosity fluids for a total of 45 trials. Overall, suction rates were faster for the large-bore suction catheter compared with the Yankauer (relative difference 22 mL/s; 95% CI 17-28) and ETTMA (8 mL/s; 95% CI 5-10). The large-bore catheter had consistently faster suction rates compared with the Yankauer and ETTMA combination across all fluid viscosities.

Conclusions: The commercial large-bore suction catheter had faster suction rates than the makeshift ETTMA combination when compared with the standard Yankauer.