Epiglottic injury and airway management – a challenging and unexpected diagnosis

Patients with facial trauma are complex; difficult airway management is often anticipated and challenging for the anaesthetist. Awake tracheal intubation is the gold standard in the management of predicted difficult airway because of its high success rate and safety profile. We present the case of a patient with facial trauma who underwent orotracheal intubation with combined videolaryngoscopy and flexible bronchoscopy, under conscious sedation with intermittent boluses of ketamine and dexmedetomidine. Videolaryngoscopy showed significant oedema and epiglottic laceration, not diagnosed by the computed tomography scan, with visualisation of a false passage that could have led to a failed intubation and further trauma. Airway management in patients with facial trauma is challenging and should be planned and discussed by a multidisciplinary team. A technique combining videolaryngoscopy and flexible bronchoscopy during awake intubation has previously been described and, when used in this case, was successful.