HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

In
medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...
, a nasopharyngeal airway (NPA), nasal trumpet (because of its flared end), or nose hose, is a type of ''airway adjunct'', a tube that is designed to be inserted through the nasal passage down into the posterior pharynx to secure an open
airway The respiratory tract is the subdivision of the respiratory system involved with the process of conducting air to the alveoli for the purposes of gas exchange in mammals. The respiratory tract is lined with respiratory epithelium as respiratory ...
. It was introduced by in 1958. When a patient becomes unconscious, the muscles in the jaw commonly relax and can allow the tongue to slide back and obstruct the airway. This makes
airway management Airway management includes a set of maneuvers and medical procedures performed to prevent and relieve an airway obstruction. This ensures an open pathway for gas exchange between a patient's lungs and the atmosphere. This is accomplished by either ...
necessary, and an NPA is one of the available tools. The purpose of the flared end is to prevent the device from becoming lost inside the patient's nose.


Sizes

As with other catheters, NPAs are measured using the
French catheter scale The French scale, also known as the French gauge or Charrière system, is a widely used measurement system for the size of catheters. It is commonly abbreviated as Fr but may also be abbreviated as Fg, FR or F, and less frequently as CH or Ch (re ...
, but sizes are usually also quoted in millimeters. Typical sizes include: 6.5 mm/28FR, 7.0 mm/30FR, 7.5 mm/32FR, 8.0 mm/34FR, and 8.5 mm/36FR.


Indications and contraindications

These devices are used by emergency care professionals such as EMTs and paramedics in situations where an artificial form of airway maintenance is necessary, but
tracheal intubation Tracheal intubation, usually simply referred to as intubation, is the placement of a flexible plastic catheter, tube into the vertebrate trachea, trachea (windpipe) to maintain an open airway or to serve as a conduit through which to administer c ...
is impossible, inadvisable, or outside the practitioner's scope of practice. An NPA is often used in patients who are conscious or have an altered level of consciousness where an oropharyngeal airway would trigger the gag reflex. The use of an NPA is contraindicated when there is trauma to the face, especially the nose or if there is a suspected skull fracture.


Insertion

The correct size airway is chosen by measuring the device on the patient: the device should reach from the patient's nostril to the earlobe or the angle of the jaw.Daniel Limmer and Michael F. O'Keefe. 2005. ''Emergency Care'' 10th ed. Edward T. Dickinson, Ed. Pearson, Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey. Page 147. The outside of the tube is lubricated with a lubricant, often water-soluble (depending on the product) so that it enters the nose more easily while also lowering the chance of causing nasal trauma to the patient. The device is inserted until the flared end rests against the nostril.


References

{{Auth Airway management Medical equipment Respiration