[Damage of a laryngeal mask airway during anesthesia]

A 21-year-old man was scheduled for fixation of a fractured radius and ulna under general anesthesia using a laryngeal mask airway (LM). Anesthesia was induced with propofol 120 mg and fentanyl 0.1 mg. After administration of vecuronium 6 mg, we attempted insertion of the LM (# 5). The first trial was unsuccessful because the tube of the LM was bent in the pharynx. We attempted it again and the LM was successfully inserted. It was connected with the anesthetic circuit, and manual ventilation was started. However, the LM was suddenly broken at the basal part of the tube connector before the start of operation, and it became detached from the anesthetic circuit. Therefore, we removed the remaining LM from the mouth, and inserted a new LM (# 5). The peroperative course was uneventful. We conclude that inspection of a recycled LM is important before using it in order to prevent such an event as the present case.