We carried out an audit of needle cricothyroidotomy and transtracheal ventilation used during anaesthesia for elective endolaryngeal surgery. The data on 90 consecutive procedures was collected over two years. Patients were anaesthetized using a total intravenous technique. An intravenous cannula or Tuohy needle was placed through the cricothyroid membrane and the patient was ventilated via the cannula using high frequency jet ventilation.
Technical details of the procedure and any perioperative complications were recorded.
There were 12 complications in total. Only three of these were clearly related to the cricothyroid puncture, i.e., one minor bleed and two cases of limited local surgical emphysema. All complications were minor and resolved without sequelae.
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