[A new method for endotracheal intubation with the Bullard laryngoscope]

The Bullard laryngoscope is an anatomically shaped rigid fiber optic instrument designed for indirect laryngoscopy and intubation. It requires no neck extension nor flexion to perform laryngeal intubation. This characteristic is especially useful in the case of difficult airway. The Bullard laryngoscope, however, with which it is easy to visualize the cords, has not been popular yet, because using the intubating forceps mechanism requires a certain amount of skill. The intubation method developed by us with Bullard laryngoscope has been tried on 26 patients with difficult airway and ten patients with normal airway. An endotracheal tube is inserted through nostril, and intubation is performed viewing the tube and larynx during all the processes of intubation. Three kinds of endotracheal tubes, i.e. Magill type plain tubes, styletted tubes, and directional tip tubes, are compared. The method using a directional tip tube (Endotrol) is concluded as the best among them. The Endotrol tube itself has such a suitable shape for nasal intubation that it can be introduced to the larynx with little directional change. Therefore, our method is mastered with a shorter training period than the intubation method with fiber-optic laryngoscopes. In conclusion, our intubation method with the Bullard laryngoscopes using the directional tip tubes (Endotrol) is useful for patients with difficult airways, and is also nontraumatic and easy to perform.