Colchester Fibreoptic Intubation Training

Risks

• Trauma to the airway including bleeding or perforation and abscess formation
• Allergic reactions to lignocaine, glycopyrrolate, xylometazoline, latex etc.
• Drug toxicity due to lignocaine
• Aspiration of gastric contents
• Infection: localised or systemic

Apart from minor nasopharyngeal trauma, none of these complications are common. The lidocaine dosage used is large (9 mg/kg) however this has been found to be safe in multiple studies .(Efthimiou J, Higenbottam T, Holt D, Cochrane GM. Plasma concentrations of lignocaine during fibreoptic bronchoscopy. Thorax 1982; 37: 6871). Awake fibreoptic intubation seems to b e safe in patients at high risk of aspiration (Ovassapian A, Krejcie TC, Yelich SJ, Dykes MHM. Awake fibreoptic intubation in patients at high risk of aspiration. Br J Anaesth 1989; 62: 1316).