The Resus Room8 Nov 2018

Cricoid Pressure; Roadside to Resus

We've heard a lot about advanced airway management recently, with some really significant publications over the last few months and in the last few weeks in JAMA we've had another!

Cricoid pressure during emergency anaesthesia and for those at high risk of aspiration has been common place for more than half a century. But it's a topic that has caused quite some debate. On one hand it has the potential to reduce aspiration, a very real and potentially very serious complication of RSI. But on the other it has the potential to hinder the view on laryngoscopy and decrease first pass success.

The founding evidence for cricoid pressure has always been a little soft. In this podcast we look at the background of cricoid pressure and then run through this key paper, discussing the implications it holds for both pre and in-hospital advanced airway management.

As always we'd love to hear any thoughts or comments you have on the website and via twitter, we look forward to hearing from you.

Enjoy!

Simon, Rob & James

References

Effect of Cricoid Pressure Compared With a Sham Procedure in the Rapid Sequence Induction of Anaesthesia: The IRIS Randomized Clinical Trial. Birenbaum A. JAMA Surg 2018

Cricoid pressure to control regurgitation of stomach contents during induction of anaesthesia. Sellick BA Lancet.1961

Safer Prehospital Anaesthesia 2017;AAGBI

JC: Cricoid Pressure and RSI, do we still need it?St Emlyn's

Cricoid: To press, or not to press?(Hinds and May)

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(286)

August 2026; papers of the month

This month we've got another really varied mix of papers that all have the potential to influence everyday emergency and prehospital practice. We start by asking a question that's becoming increasingl...

2 Aug 35min

Laryngectomy and Tracheostomy Emergencies; Roadside to Resus

Tracheostomy and laryngectomy emergencies are classic high-acuity, low-frequency situations. They do not happen every day, but when they do, airway problems can develop quickly, and the wrong interven...

16 Juli 50min

July 2026; papers of the month

Welcome back to July's Papers of the Month. This month we've got three papers that tackle some of the biggest questions we face in emergency and critical care medicine. They're all very different stud...

1 Juli 31min

Excellence in Facemask Ventilation; Roadside to Resus

Face mask ventilation is one of those skills that can easily be overlooked. It's often seen as the simple bit of airway management — something that sits below the glamour of videolaryngoscopy, fibre-o...

16 Juni 59min

June 2026; papers of the month

This month's episode takes us deep into trauma care, but not just the medicine we deliver but also the systems, circumstances and social factors that shape who survives and who doesn't. We start by lo...

1 Juni 32min

Reframing Anaphylaxis; Roadside to Resus

Anaphylaxis is one of those conditions we think we have got pretty well sorted. Recognise it early, give adrenaline, support the airway and circulation, and crack on. And in fairness, for the vast maj...

14 Maj 44min

May 2026; papers of the month

This month's Papers of the Month is a real mix of papers that challenge some of the things we think we know, whilst also highlighting just how important systems and processes are in improving patient ...

1 Maj 33min

Excellence in Defibrillation; Roadside to Resus

Timely and effective defibrillation is fundamental to excellent outcomes in cardiac arrest care. But there is a growing body of evidence suggesting that how we deliver those shocks may matter just as ...

8 Apr 47min