Effectiveness of preoxygenation during endotracheal intubation in a head-elevated position: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Abstract

During endotracheal intubation (ETI), a difficult airway is a challenging scenario, with the potential to result in hypoxaemia, causing catastrophic consequences for both the patient and the clinicians involved. Preoxygenation before ETI is therefore of paramount importance because it serves to increase the amount of oxygen reserve in the body. This prolongs the buffer time before hypoxaemia occurs, allowing patients to tolerate a longer duration of apnoea. The clinicians in a crisis situation such as this would have a larger margin of safety, allowing them time to think and to act in securing access to the patient's airway, thus potentially saving the patient's life [1,2]. The importance of preoxygenation is such that today it is an essential part of the arsenal available to clinicians performing ETI, and it has