To compare clinical versus ultrasound assessment for correct placement of Laryngeal Mask Airway Blockbuster: A randomized prospective study

The development of supraglottic airway devices (SADs) has revolutionized airway management during general anesthesia. The use of SADs is now standard in airway management technique, and they fill the niche between the face mask and tracheal tube in terms of both airway anatomy and degree of invasion. Anesthesiologists need an effective and reliable method to confirm LMA placement definitively without interrupting ventilation. Ultrasound is noninvasive, and can be a reliable means of assessing the correct placement of SADs [1-3]. The laryngeal mask airway (LMA) is widely used as they are easier to insert than an endotracheal tube, but there is a greater likelihood of misplacement. Anaesthesiologists may not always be able to confirm the exact position of an LMA promptly, potentially resulting in inadequate ventilation, and in turn resulting in need for reinsertion. To avoid these complications, it is essential to be able to determine the reason for inadequate ventilation quickly. Current methods to assess LMA placement include the following: auscultation, the leakage test, insertion of a suction tube into the drainage conduit, the bubble test, and fiberoptic examination [2, 3, 7]. While these techniques are simple and widely used, in recent years, point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) has emerged as a promising non-invasive tool for real-time airway assessment.