Needle cricothyrotomy or percutaneous transtracheal jet ventilation (PCJV) can truly be a life saving procedure. It is a fast, effective way of providing oxygen to a patient with an obstructed airway who does not respond to more conventional means of opening the airway. The “can’t intubate-can’t ventilate” scenario is a good example. PCJV is faster to perform than a surgical airway. It will buy you time to establish a more permanent airway such as an intubation or surgical airway if the patient is hypoxic.

However, PCJV carries some rare though potentially serious risks of worsening airway obstruction and cardiovascular collapse if the catheter is not correctly positioned within the trachea. Fear may prevent us from using it. In addition, most of us have never had to use PCJV in an emergency or even seen it used. Lack of familiarity with the equipment and simple lack of comfort may make us hesitate to try. We may not even think about it in the moment of crisis. So let’s look at some of the ways we can use PCJV safely. Read More …