Original ContributionOral mask ventilation is more effective than face mask ventilation after nasal surgeryâ˜

•Anesthesia emergence, after nasal surgery, is prone to respiratory complications.•Difficult mask ventilation can be encountered after extubation.•After nasal surgery, the incidence of difficult mask ventilation is higher with face mask ventilation.•Oral mask ventilation provides higher tidal volume delivery, after nasal surgery.

ObjectiveTo evaluate and compare the face mask (FM) and oral mask (OM) ventilation techniques during anesthesia emergence regarding tidal volume, leak volume, and difficult mask ventilation (DMV) incidence.DesignProspective, randomized, crossover study.SettingOperating room, training and research hospital.SubjectsAmerican Society of Anesthesiologists physical status I and II adult patients scheduled for nasal surgery.InterventionsPatients in group FM-OM received FM ventilation first, followed by OM ventilation, and patients in group OM-FM received OM ventilation first, followed by FM ventilation, with spontaneous ventilation after deep extubation. The FM ventilation was applied with the 1-handed EC-clamp technique. The OM was placed only over the mouth, and the 1-handed EC-clamp technique was used again. A child's size FM was used for the OM ventilation technique, the mask was rotated, and the inferior part of the mask was placed toward the nose.MeasurementsThe leak volume (MVleak), mean airway pressure (Pmean), and expired tidal volume (TVe) were assessed with each mask technique for 3 consecutive breaths. A mask ventilation grade ≥ 3 was considered DMV.Main resultsDMV occurred more frequently during FM ventilation (75% with FM vs 8% with OM). In the FM-first sequence, the mean TVe was 249 ± 61 mL with the FM and 455 ± 35 mL with the OM (P = .0001), whereas in the OM-first sequence, it was 276 ± 81 mL with the FM and 409 ± 37 mL with the OM (P = .0001). Regardless of the order used, the OM technique significantly decreased the MVleak and increased the TVe when compared to the FM technique.ConclusionDuring anesthesia emergence after nasal surgery the OM may offer an effective ventilation method as it decreases the incidence of DMV and the gas leak around the mask and provides higher tidal volume delivery compared with FM ventilation.