Acute Airway Management and Rapid Sequence Intubation: A Comprehensive Clinical Guideline

Evidence-based guideline for airway assessment, preoxygenation, RSI medications, difficult airway algorithms, surgical airway, and scenario-specific airway management.

4 articles • Updated Mar 2026

Acute Airway Management & RSI — Part 4: Clinical Scenarios & Post-Intubation Management

Scenario-specific airway management for trauma, elevated ICP, status asthmaticus, morbid obesity, pregnancy, pediatric patients, angioedema/anaphylaxis, and burns. Complete post-intubation ventilator settings, sedation/analgesia regimens, extubation criteria, and equipment reference tables by age and weight.

guidelines•Mar 2026•guidelines

Acute Airway Management & RSI — Part 3: Difficult Airway Management & Surgical Airway

Failed first attempt optimization, video laryngoscopy types and evidence, bougie technique, supraglottic airways with sizing tables, intubating through SGA, front-of-neck access (FONA), surgical cricothyrotomy (scalpel-bougie-tube), needle cricothyrotomy, and the complete difficult airway algorithm.

guidelines•Mar 2026•guidelines

Acute Airway Management & RSI — Part 2: RSI Protocol & Medications

Complete RSI protocol including preparation, pretreatment agents, induction agents with dosing tables, neuromuscular blocking agents with contraindications and reversal, paralysis verification, post-intubation sedation, confirmation of intubation, awake intubation, and drug-assisted intubation without paralysis.

guidelines•Mar 2026•guidelines

Acute Airway Management & RSI — Part 1: Airway Assessment & Preoxygenation

LEMON assessment, Mallampati classification, Cormack-Lehane grading, MOANS/RODS/SHORT mnemonics, 3-3-2 rule, standard preoxygenation, HFNC apneic oxygenation, NIV preoxygenation, and optimal patient positioning.

guidelines•Mar 2026•guidelines