40
35
Years qualified
30
25
20
15
10
5
0 Completely Somewhat Not very
Not at all Level of confidence with intubation
Figure 5 . Levels of confidence with intubation and number of years qualified .
500 450 400 350
Number of responses
300 250 200 150 100 50
VS VN
0 Completely Somewhat Not very Not at all Level of confidence with intubation
Figure 6 . Levels of confidence with intubation and the type of veterinary professional .
The Brodbelt enquiry [ 5 ] highlights ETTs as a risk factor for feline anaesthetic death and advises their use cautiously in minor procedures . A few respondents mentioned this in their airway management method reasoning . The avoidance of ETTs may be justified to reduce the risk of mortality of patients . However , more research needs to be conducted to establish this association , particularly now that other airway-protecting methods , such as SGADs , are available . The v-gel device was designed to avoid the common pitfalls of an ETT by forming an atraumatic oesophageal seal , which protects the airway from regurgitated material and removes risks such as tracheal tears and tracheal irritation [ 6 ] . The v-gel has also been reported to have a quicker placement time than ETTs and therefore can eliminate concerns about prolonging the surgical procedure [ 7 ] . There are no contraindications for using the v-gel device for short procedures and therefore it could be an ideal solution for cat castrations where there are concerns about the risks of ETTs .
Volume 38 ( 1 ) • February 2023
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