Evaluation of the Ambu ® aScope® for Tracheal Intubation During Cervical Spine Immobilization With a Cervical Collar, in Comparison With a Conventional Reusable Fiberscope.

Any general anesthesia requiring tracheal intubation for controlled ventilation includes the likelihood of intubation failure and, in case of difficult or impossible mask ventilation, can be life-threatening. In patients with diagnosed or suspected disease of the cervical spine, airway control can be tricky. Indeed, the cervical collar used to secure the cervical spine makes direct laryngoscopy impossible. In elective surgery, the most commonly used technique is fiberoptic intubation, achievable without removing of the cervical collar.

A new disposable fiberscope was recently developed by Ambu ®: the aScope®. It consists of a disposable flexible fiberscopic device, whose distal end is fitted with a camera that can be directed. This device is connected to a separate reusable LCD display. The aScope® is used as a conventional flexible fiberscope to guide the instrumentation of the airway.

With the exception of case reports, all studies of this device in difficult conditions were performed on mannequins.

The investigators propose to assess and validate this device on real patients with difficult airways caused by a rigid cervical collar and compare intubation conditions and time to the gold standard technique, the classical reusable fiberscope.

Induction of general anesthesia is performed by the anesthesiologist responsible for the patient, according to the standards in the anesthesiology department.