Difficult Airway Society guidelines for management of the unanticipated difficult intubation

Summary Problems with tracheal intubation are infrequent but are the most common cause of anaesthetic death or brain damage. The clinical situation is not always managed well. The Difficult Airway Society (DAS) has developed guidelines for management of the unanticipated difficult tracheal intubation in the non‐obstetric adult patient without upper airway obstruction. These guidelines have been developed by consensus and are based on evidence and experience. We have produced flow‐charts for three scenarios: routine induction; rapid sequence induction; and failed intubation, increasing hypoxaemia and difficult ventilation in the paralysed, anaesthetised patient. The flow‐charts are simple, clear and definitive.…