critical care medicine
How To Insert a Nasopharyngeal Airway
Introduction
Nasopharyngeal airways are flexible tubes with one end flared (hence their synonym: nasal trumpets) and the other end beveled that are inserted, beveled end first, through the nares into the pharynx. (See also Airway Establishment and Control , Pharyngeal airways (both nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal) are a component of preliminary upper airway management for patients with apnea or severe ventilatory failure, which also includes Proper patient positioning Manual jaw maneuvers The goal of all of these methods is to relieve upper airway obstruction caused by a relaxed tongue lying on the posterior pharyngeal wall. 