Airway management

Airway Management

Airway management (pronunciation: /ˈeərweɪ mænɪdʒmənt/) is a set of medical procedures performed to prevent airway obstruction and thus ensure an open pathway for gas exchange between a patient's lungs and the atmosphere.

Etymology

The term "airway" is derived from the Old English "ǣrweg", meaning "path of air", and "management" comes from the Italian "maneggiare", meaning "to handle". Together, they refer to the medical handling of the path of air.

Definition

Airway management involves a series of maneuvers and medical procedures to prevent and relieve airway obstruction. This ensures an open pathway for gas exchange between a patient's lungs and the atmosphere. It is a primary consideration in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, anesthesia, emergency medicine, and intensive care medicine.

Techniques

There are several techniques used in airway management, including:

• Tracheal intubation
• Laryngeal mask airway
• Cricothyrotomy
• Tracheostomy
• Bag-valve-mask ventilation

Related Terms

• Anesthesia
• Intubation
• Resuscitation
• Ventilation
• Oxygen therapy

See Also

• Emergency medicine
• Intensive care medicine
• Pulmonology

External links

• Medical encyclopedia article on Airway management
• Wikipedia's article - Airway management

This WikiMD dictionary article is a stub. You can help make it a full article.

---

Languages: - East Asian 中文, 日本, 한국어, South Asian हिन्दी, Urdu, বাংলা, తెలుగు, தமிழ், ಕನ್ನಡ,
Southeast Asian Indonesian, Vietnamese, Thai, မြန်မာဘာသာ, European español, Deutsch, français, русский, português do Brasil, Italian, polski