TomP
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Just wondering has anybody ever inserted the combitube into the trachea?
Combitube trachea
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Only in training. I've never had to use the Combitube on an actual patient.
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TomP
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I've never used it in the field either. I dont even know of anybody who caries it. Most have a king as their secondary. I was just wondering.
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Kings are our primary
Can only intubated if it fails or is contraindicated.
Never used a combitube on anything except a mannequin.
Having never used one and having a fair grasp on anatomy I still don't see how you'd get it into the trachea without some real dumb luck.
rmabrey
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We have the Rusche EZ tube as our secondary. Ive heard of fire landing in the trachea once. Ive never actually seen it.
Ill add the Rusch EZ tube is very rigid and can be attributed to at least 3 perforated trachs in our system. We carry it for one reason, and that is a government contract. We are going to King's as soon as the agency approves it (this is what ive been told anyway).
Ill add the Rusch EZ tube is very rigid and can be attributed to at least 3 perforated trachs in our system. We carry it for one reason, and that is a government contract. We are going to King's as soon as the agency approves it (this is what ive been told anyway).
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It's possible, but if memory serves me right, the Combitube is the rough equivalent of an 8.0 ETT and probably wouldn't fit very many tracheas. However, it's designed to be used as an ETT if it somehow manages to be placed there, and apparently one does every so often...Kings are our primary
Can only intubated if it fails or is contraindicated.
Never used a combitube on anything except a mannequin.
Having never used one and having a fair grasp on anatomy I still don't see how you'd get it into the trachea without some real dumb luck.
Most places I'm familiar with have switched over to the KT because it seems to be be a simplified Combitube that isn't designed for tracheal placement. Simpler and only one ventilation port to really worry about.
About 10 years ago, one of the Counties I worked in essentially allowed the Combitube to be a primary device for ETI, however, they very much preferred it to be a backup device. However, the Combitube could only have been used if it was the right size and the normal ETI procedures were followed. Most medics I talked with at the time regarded it as a backup device or something they'd grab if they had to do a blind intubation otherwise.
Most of them had never used the Combitube outside training either.