Posture used by anaesthetists during laryngoscopy

Abstract

Background. There is little advice on the posture to be used when intubating the trachea. Does the stance used depend on experience? Methods. Twenty-six subjects with varying experience of intubation were photographed during laryngoscopy of an intubation training mannequin. Posture was measured from the photographs and the data were analysed with the Mann-Whitney U-test. Results. The less experienced group had shallower lines of sight, levered more, and stood with their face closer to the mannequin (P=0.037, 0.018 and 0.06 respectively). Conclusions. Novice anaesthetists should be given explicit instructions on correct trolley height and should be taught to intubate with a straight back.