Abstract

FERNANDEZ-VAQUERO, Miguel Ángel  and  CARRILLO-ESPER, Raúl. Airway ultrasound: in search of the cricothyoid membrane. Rev. mex. anestesiol. [online]. 2021, vol.44, n.2, pp.116-122.  Epub Oct 04, 2021. ISSN 0484-7903.

Ultrasonography is an active part of the clinical tools that we have in our arsenal for the evaluation of patients, and in the management of the airway, it can allow us to locate and mark the cricothyroid membrane prior to the management of a patient with a possible Difficult Airway. In trained hands allows the anatomy to be identified so that a cricothyroidotomy can be performed quickly and accurately in just 24.3 seconds. In this article, we show a rapid and visual systematic ultrasound localization of the cricothyroid membrane with an estimated time less than one minute. A linear high-frequency probe (5-14 MHz) should be used for exploration, as it is probably the most suitable for evaluating surface structures (within 0-5 cm below the skin surface). The positioning of the operator and the ultrasound scanner will depend on the patient’s position, so in seated patients the operator is placed behind him and the ultrasound scanner in front of both, and in patients in a supine position, the operator is placed at the bedside of the patient and the ultrasound at the level of the right elbow.

Keywords : Ultrasound; airway; cricothyroid membrane.

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