Introduction

The air way assessment competence requires knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of the airway which you have been learnt in session 3 of this module. The airway conducts gases between the atmosphere and the alveoli. Therefore, competence in airway management is a critical skill for safe administration of anesthesia, managing emergency air way problem and enabled the anesthetist to play a key role in cardio pulmonary resuscitation. Failure to identify a difficult airway prior to the induction of anesthesia can lead to a paralyzed patient that cannot be ventilated or intubated. Most cases of aspiration, inhaling gastric contents into the lungs, occur during the management of an airway. Cardiac arrests following the induction of anesthesia are often the result of difficulty with intubation, ventilation and oxygenation. In this session you will learn to adopt knowledge, skill and the right attitudes on methods of air way assessment that helps you to identify the normal and predict difficult air way in order to make the necessary Preanesthetic preparation that prevent catastrophic events.