Anaes Vivas · Airway management
The airway emergency — recognition and CRM
A clinical viva on the airway emergency evolving into arrest: the universal first response, the differentiation of the emergency, escalation to CICO, the management of hypoxic cardiac arrest, and the crisis-resource-management principles that govern outcome.
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Prompt
You are called to a cardiac arrest on a surgical ward. The patient arrested during a difficult reintubation by the team, the saturation is unrecordable, and the endotracheal tube is in doubt. Walk me through your immediate management and the principles that determine survival.
Stimulus
You are called to a cardiac arrest on a surgical ward. The patient arrested during a difficult reintubation by the team, the saturation is unrecordable, and the endotracheal tube is in doubt. Walk me through your immediate management and the principles that determine survival[1][6].
References8ShowHide
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- [2]Wu X, et al. Airway Decision-Making in Acute Epiglottitis: A Case Report of Planned Tracheostomy in a Can Ventilate but Cannot Intubate (CVCI) Scenario. Clin Case Rep, 2026.PMID 42290811
- [3]Mullally ME, et al. Evaluation of novel materials for front-of-neck access simulations. Anaest Intensive Care, 2026.PMID 42290043
- [4]Sato M, et al. Suspected Neostigmine-Associated Bronchospasm Complicated by Pulmonary Edema During General Anesthesia: A Case Report. Cureus, 2026.PMID 42311723
- [5]Del Tedesco JC, et al. [The mindset of anesthesiologists while performing surgical airway management]. Anaesthesiologie, 2026.PMID 42230350
- [6]Karim HMR, et al. Letter to the Editor: Insight into emergency endotracheal intubation in critically ill and strategies beyond equipment. World J Crit Care Med, 2026.PMID 42272892
- [7]Frerk C, Mitchell VS, McNarry AF, et al. Difficult Airway Society 2015 guidelines for management of unanticipated difficult intubation in adults. Br J Anaesth, 2015.PMID 26556848
- [8]Al-alami AA, Zestos MM, Baraka AS. Pediatric laryngospasm: prevention and treatment. Curr Opin Anaesthesiol, 2009.PMID 19434787