Manejo de la intubación traqueal difícil no anticipada en adultos: recomendaciones actuales

Unanticipated difficult tracheal intubation is associated with hypoxaemia, aspiration, neurological injury and cardiac arrest. The study therefore aimed to analyse current recommendations for the management of unanticipated difficult tracheal intubation in adults, with emphasis on the Difficult Airway Society guidelines. A narrative review was conducted in PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus and Google Scholar, with a sample of 32 publications out of 326 records. The algorithm keeps four sequential plans, intubation, supraglottic airway, face-mask ventilation and emergency front-of-neck access, and prioritises first-pass success, videolaryngoscopy, continuous oxygenation, capnographic confirmation and human factors. It was concluded that systematic application of the algorithm and team training reduce airway complications.