Operator Perception of the Ability of Multiple Single-Use Bronchoscopes to Engage Difficult Airway Segments

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the prevalence of single-use bronchoscopes outside the operating room, where they had previously been employed primarily as intubation adjuncts. However, direct comparisons of the performance of these bronchoscopes has been limited. In this study, we describe our initial experience studying operator perception of how well multiple different bronchoscopes are able to engage difficult airway segments in an ex-vivo model. Methods: Nine faculty and fellows from the Pulmonary and Critical Care Division at UCSD were recruited to complete an airway survey of an ex-vivo model using three single use bronchoscopes (Olympus H-SteriScope, Ambu A-Scope 4, Verathon GlideScope B-Flex). This survey included engagement into traditionally difficult airway segments (RB1, RB6, LB1/2 and LB6) with and without a tool in the working channel. Immediately after completing these bronchoscopies, participants were directed to complete an anonymous survey rating each bronchoscopes ease of maneuverability into the difficult segments on a scale of 1-100 with a higher number representing a more favorable rating. The participant's ability to successfully engage each of these segments was also recorded. Results: Participants rated the ability to maneuver into difficult airway segments with a tool in the working channel by the Olympus singleuse bronchoscope (97.2 [94.3-100]) and Ambu single-use bronchoscope (84.7[74.2-95.2]) higher than the GlideScope single-use bronchoscope (49.3[36.3-64.3]) (Table 1). Additionally, a greater number of participants were able to successfully engage the selected difficult airway segments using the Olympus and Ambu single-use bronchoscopes both with and without a tool in the working channel when compared to the GlideScope single-use bronchoscope (Table 2 and Table 3). Conclusions: In this singlecenter study, the Olympus H-SteriScope and Ambu A-Scope 4 single-use bronchoscopes had a higher perceived maneuverability and were better able to engage difficult airway segments than the GlideScope B-Flex single-use bronchoscope. Further studies are needed to compare these single-use bronchoscopes to reusable bronchoscopes.