Per-oral flexible laryngoscopy in awake neonates and infants: the 'pacifier' technique

P Loizou1, N Haloob1, E Evgeniou2

  • 1Department of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, The Lister Hospital, Stevenage, UK.

Insights

Pacification techniques can help calm infants during awake laryngoscopy for suspected laryngomalacia. This study introduces a new pacification method for per-oral flexible laryngoscopy in neonates.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal care
  • Pediatric otolaryngology
  • Medical procedures

Background:

  • ENT specialists frequently assess neonates in NICU for suspected laryngomalacia.
  • Current practice involves awake assessment, which can distress infants and parents.
  • Literature indicates successful use of pacification during various infant procedures.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To describe procedures effectively utilizing pacification in neonates and infants.
  • To introduce a novel pacification technique for awake per-oral flexible laryngoscopy.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of successful pacification techniques in neonates and infants.
  • Development and description of a specific pacification method for laryngoscopy.

Main Results:

  • Numerous procedures have been successfully performed on pacified neonates and infants.
  • A new pacification technique for per-oral flexible laryngoscopy in awake infants is presented.

Conclusions:

  • Pacification is a viable strategy to improve infant tolerance during awake laryngoscopy.
  • The developed technique offers a potentially less distressing method for assessing neonatal airway issues.
Abstract

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