The Impact of Soiled Airway Management on CPR Quality

Regurgitation is an adverse event common during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and occurs in 20%-32% of patients experiencing out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). It can impair ventilation, induce aspiration, and decrease survival to hospital discharge. Gastric fluid in the airway obscures the laryngeal view, thereby considerably decreasing the first-pass success of endotracheal intubation (ETI) by paramedics. A human cadaver study reported that ETI outperforms other airway management devices, such as the i-gel, laryngeal mask, and laryngeal tube, in preventing aspiration when regurgitation occurs during CPR. However, ETI is also associated with multiple and prolonged CPR pauses.Compared with the use of supraglottic airway (SGA) devices, ETI results in more hands-off time during CPR. Recent randomised clinical trials have revealed that airway management with an SGA device provides superior outcomes to those of ETI in patients with OHCA. However, ETI remains the preferred management strategy for an airway affected by regurgitation in patients with OHCA. Current guidelines focus on the quality of CPR because it is a key determinant of survival in patients with OHCA. However, evidence regarding the impact of regurgitation during ETI on CPR quality is limited. This manikin simulation study assessed CPR quality during ETI in airways with and without regurgitation.