Securing the Oral Endotracheal Tube in Patients With Facial Burns: A Critical Care Clinician Technique

Securing an endotracheal tube (ETT) in a patient with facial burns poses many challenges. There is no standard practice and the existing literature provides solutions to this problem with limited detail outlining the specifics of their techniques. The teeth offer a rigid point of fixation and are an adaptable method to secure the ETT. For their dental insight, oral and maxillofacial surgeons are often tasked with the procedure of fixing the ETT to the dentition. The aim of this technical note is to review the previously published methods of securing an ETT in burns patients and to present a logical technique to secure the ETT to the dentition for critical care clinicians without dental experience.