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Intervention steps for treating laryngospasm in pediatric patients
Laura L Burgoyne1, Doralina L Anghelescu
1Division of Anesthesiology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105-2794, USA. laura.burgoyne@stjude.org
Paediatric Anaesthesia
|March 5, 2008
Summary
Laryngospasm in children occurred at a rate of 1/1000 anesthetics. Treatment involved airway repositioning, positive pressure, anesthesia deepening, muscle relaxants, and intubation.
Area of Science:
- Anesthesiology
- Pediatric Critical Care
Background:
- Laryngospasm is a serious anesthesia complication, more frequent in children.
- Optimal treatment strategies for pediatric laryngospasm lack clinical data.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize interventions for laryngospasm in pediatric patients.
- To analyze the timing and management of laryngospasm episodes.
Main Methods:
- Reviewed institutional quality improvement data (July 1999-December 2002).
- Examined patient records for laryngospasm timing, airway management, and interventions.
Main Results:
- Identified 21 cases of laryngospasm (1/1000) in 21,452 anesthetics.
- Episodes occurred during emergence (47.6%), induction (28.6%), and maintenance (23.8%).
- Interventions included airway repositioning, CPAP, muscle relaxants (47.6%), and intubation (23.8%).
Conclusions:
- The study reports the largest single-institution data on pediatric laryngospasm.
- A treatment algorithm included CPAP, anesthesia deepening, muscle relaxation, and intubation.
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