Dear Colleagues,

Despite the rapid development of other techniques of airway management, such as insertion of a supraglottic airway device, tracheal intubation remains the “gold standard” for the maintenance of a patent airway during the majority of complex surgical procedures. Hundreds of millions of tracheal intubations are performed worldwide annually, not only in operating rooms but also in the intensive care setting, in accident and emergency departments, and also during life-threatening scenarios outside the hospital. Tracheal intubation is generally a safe technique but, if complicated or failed, it may affect patient outcome, including having fatal consequences. Proper assessment and preoperative diagnostics of potentially complicated conditions of tracheal intubation is a cornerstone of modern perioperative management. Several tools may help to diagnose a potentially difficult airway, including comprehensive physical examination, use of special scoring systems, application of an airway and neck ultrasound or the use of preoperative awake nasal endoscopy. According to these perioperative diagnostic tools, an appropriate plan for the technique of tracheal intubation and required equipment should be set up in advance.       

The aim of this Special Issue is to improve knowledge on recent advances in diagnostics of difficult tracheal intubation as well as the description of innovative or novel techniques concerning intubation of the trachea. Contributors may submit editorials, reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, original articles, brief technical reports, and case reports.

Prof. Dr. Pavel Michalek
Guest Editor

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• tracheal intubation
• diagnostics of difficult laryngoscopy
• fiberoptic endoscopy
• video laryngoscopy
• airway ultrasound