Hey guys- any opinions regarding preferences of cricothyrotomy kits? There are a number of them out there now, and I haven't tried them all. Thoughts? Thanks!
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Hey guys- any opinions regarding preferences of cricothyrotomy kits? There are a number of them out there now, and I haven't tried them all. Thoughts? Thanks!
Unless trained, and even still, performing a surgical cricothyrotomy is a highly invasive procedure. I highly doubt you will ever encounter the need to perform one, and if you did the amount of blood would disillusion all but the more experienced surgeons. I have seen a highly skilled and respected paramedic freeze after performing the initial incision, I'm not sure of your skill level, or doubting it, just food for thought.
I'm going to assume you're a Paramedic.
Surgical cric isn't allowed in my state, but the only kits I've ever trained with were the NARP ones. Apart from that, the scalpel from an OB kit and cutting the end off of an ET tube works...
I can't remember the name of the company, but I think it's the same one that markets the Home Appendectomy Kit and the Home Cholecystectomy Kit.
A small percentage of folks have a not inconsequential anterior jugular vein in addition to the more lateral internal & external jugular veins. This can make the procedure more complicated from a hemostasis point of view. OTOH - when you need one, there aren't a lot of alternatives.
john
These things are best left to the professionals...not sure what your level of training is, but practicing one or two on a mannequin is from proper experience.
Another member informed me of his current licensing level, and it's within his scope.
The thing is...if a cricothyrotomy is even being contemplated for a particular patient, that patient is in deep shit. In that case, even a bad cricothyrotomy by someone only partially or poorly trained is better than no cricothyrotomy at all. If they get the cric, they might die, if the don't get it, they will die. Advanced airway management is IMHO the most important set of skills a Paramedic or emergency medicine doctor can learn. Nobody is going to be really good at it because the need for it represents about .5% of airway cases. The most experienced EMT-P may only see one or two crics in his lifetime, the average paramedic will never have to do a cric. Probably.