Do Airway Skills Learned on a Manikin Transfer to Patients?

Laryngeal mask airway (LMA) devices have an established role in prehospital and emergency care, with both human and manikin studies showing ease of placement even by inexperienced users. But does manikin-based performance translate to patient care?

Researchers in Germany recruited 63 novice medical students to ventilate a manikin and then an anesthetized patient, using both a facemask and an LMA-Supreme. Students received didactic instruction, a demonstration, and a supervised manikin practice session for each device. In manikins, 100% of students were able to ventilate with both devices. Among the 51 students who participated in the patient phase of the study, 66% were successful at ventilating with a facemask, compared to 90% with an LMA-S…