Comparison of mean insertion time of supraglottic airway device in children followed by trapezius squeeze test versus jaw thrust

Objective: To compare the assessment of the timing of insertion of supraglottic airway device in children by trapezius squeeze test versus jaw thrust as an indicator of the depth of anaesthesia.Study Design: Prospective comparative study. Place and Duration of Study: Combined Military Hospital, Quetta Pakistan, from Jan to Dec 2021. Methodology: Eighty children undergoing surgical interventions under Sevoflurane anaesthesia with supraglottic airway device having ASA physical status I or II were divided into two sets of 40 children. Both groups were labelled Group-A (trapezius squeeze test) and Group-B (jaw thrust). Supraglottic airway device iGel was inserted immediately after the negative trapezius squeeze test or jaw thrust. A negative test was defined as the absence of cough, reflex movements, breath-holding, gag reflex and laryngospasm. Insertion time and the number of attempts were carefully recorded. Results: The mean age of patients in the study was 4.8±2.028years, and the mean weight was 17.05±5.34. 47% of patients were in ASA-I, 52% in ASA-II in Group-A, 40 % were ASA-I and 60% in ASAII in Group-B. The mean insertion time was 143.42±5.56 seconds in Group-A and 117.525±7.15 seconds in Group-B with a p-value of 0.002. Conclusion: We concluded that the trapezius squeeze test provides better insertion conditions for supraglottic airway devices than jaw thrust during Sevoflurane anaesthesia in pediatric patients. (author)