Bedside Transtracheal Ultrasound Accurately Confirms Endotracheal Tube Placement

In a meta-analysis, transtracheal ultrasound was highly sensitive and specific for detecting tracheal placement during emergency intubation.

In the emergency department (ED), colorimetric or quantitative capnography is the gold standard for confirmation of endotracheal tube placement. Capnography may be unreliable in patients with severe pulmonary obstruction, greatly reduced pulmonary circulation, or cardiac arrest. Secondary means of confirming proper tube placement include aspiration devices (which are uncommon in most EDs), physical exam (auscultation), and chest x-ray. Transtracheal ultrasound imaging with a linear or curvilinear probe placed transversely at the cricothyroid membrane has shown promise for confirming tube placement when capnography is unavailable or thought to be unreliable ().

To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of transtracheal ultrasound for dete…

Reviewing Authors

R. Eleanor Anderson, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

R. Eleanor Anderson, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Calvin A. Brown III, MD, FAAEM

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardVerathon, Inc. (Scientific Advisory Board Member)

Editorial boardsScientific American Emergency Medicine; Manual of Emergency Airway Management (Editor-in-Chief)

Leadership positions in professional societiesPrograms Subcommittee Chair for the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine–Residency and Fellowship Fair

Calvin A. Brown III, MD, FAAEM

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardVerathon, Inc. (Scientific Advisory Board Member)

Editorial boardsScientific American Emergency Medicine; Manual of Emergency Airway Management (Editor-in-Chief)

Leadership positions in professional societiesPrograms Subcommittee Chair for the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine–Residency and Fellowship Fair

Bedside Transtracheal Ultrasound Accurately Confirms Endotracheal Tube Placement

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Reviewing Authors