DR RATHNA A,DR NIVEDITA
DOI: https://doi.org/Background: The term "difficult intubation" denotes the failure to accomplish intubation through all accessible methodologies. The necessity to anticipate potentially challenging tracheal intubation has garnered heightened significance, albeit with constrained success. The current investigation was undertaken to evaluate diverse airway assessment indices employed to foresee difficult airway scenarios in Indian patients suffering from diabetes mellitus.
Methods: This prospective, observational investigation was conducted involving 60 patients at a tertiary care facility within a private medical college and hospital located in Kanchipuram, South India. The study comprised two cohorts of participants, one consisting of individuals diagnosed with diabetes and the other comprising individuals without diabetes. All participants underwent a comprehensive evaluation of their airway utilizing the modified Mallampati test, thyromental distance measurement, head extension assessment, palm print analysis, prayer sign evaluation, and body mass index calculation. Preoperative data pertaining to various airway indices were systematically compared with the incidence of difficult intubation as determined by the Cochrane Lahane grading system..
Results: More than fifty percent of the study participants were male. Nearly two-fifths (38%) of the study cohort were classified as overweight or obese. The proportion of diabetic individuals identified as having difficult airways, according to the modified Mallampati test, thyromental distance, head extension, palm print, and prayer sign, were 57%, 43%, 57%, 37%, and 23% respectively. According to the Cochrane Lahane grading system, the occurrence of difficult intubation was determined to be 30%. Significant differences were observed in predicted difficult airways as well as in the incidence of difficult intubation between the diabetic and non-diabetic groups. The predicted percentages of difficult airways from the palm print test and prayer sign were found to be closely aligned with the gold standard, Cochrane Lahane grading.. Conclusion: Although all airway indices hold significance within the repertoire of an anesthesiologist, the palm print and the prayer sign demonstrated similar finding of routinely accepted Cochrane lahane grading among patients with diabetes mellitus.
