Historical information
Hewitt’s airway was the first known oral airway and laid the foundations for the numerous other airways that were later developed. The development of the oropharyngeal airway is one of the lesser-acknowledged advances in anaesthesia. Oral airways made anaesthesia safer and significantly reduced the trauma associated with earlier attempts at managing the obstructed airway. The Hewitt Airway – the first known artificial oral ‘air-way’.
In 1890, Frederic Hewitt noted the frequency and danger of upper airway obstruction. In 1908, dissatisfied with the use of tongue forceps and that Esmarch’s maneuver sometimes failed, he described the first oropharyngeal airway, the Hewitt Airway. The tube was less than 8 cm long, ideally connecting the oral opening to the hypopharynx. The Hewitt Airway was the foundation for many subsequent oropharyngeal airway designs.
Significance
The oropharyngeal airway is significant because of its lesser acknowledged advances in anaesthesia.
Physical description
Round metal tube with a brown rubber tubing sleeve around the outside.
Subjects
References
- The Development of Techniques for Airway Management A history of airway management.
- The Hewitt airway – the first known artificial oral ‘air-way’ 101 years since its description An article specify to Hewitt's Airway and and 101 years since its creation.
