Airway Management of Traumatic Injuries

Background

Airway obstruction was the second most common cause of potentially survivable death in all US combat casualties from October 2001 to June 2011. Thus, airway management is often a critical early step in the resuscitation of the severely injured trauma patient. Identifying harbingers of a potentially difficult airway, having knowledge of a difficult airway algorithm, and understanding the proper utilization of alternative airway devices will allow for a pre-planned strategy for successful airway management.