Management of the difficult paediatric airway

Difficulties with airway management and tracheal intubation occur relatively commonly in infants and children. Minor difficulties due to anatomical and physiological differences between paediatric patients and adults arise frequently; the more severe difficulties are usually associated with specific conditions, some of which are listed in Table 1. Although airway problems may involve pathology in the upper or lower airway, this article deals mainly with problems involving the upper airway and difficult intubation.