Sizing Oxygen Masks And Airways Across Paediatric And Adult Patients

Masks Are Sized By Face Not By Age

The oxygen, nebulizer, venturi and non-rebreathing masks run XS neonate, S paediatric standard, M paediatric elongated, L adult standard and XL adult elongated. The elongated fits exist because face length varies independently of face width. A mask that covers nose and mouth without pressing the eyes is the right one, regardless of the age on the chart.

Guedel Airways Use A Physical Landmark

Size from the corner of the mouth to the angle of the jaw. Nine sizes from 40 mm to 120 mm are colour coded so the measurement can be converted to a device without reading print, which is the point of the colour code under resuscitation conditions.

Nasopharyngeal Airways Use A Different Landmark

From the nostril to the tragus of the ear. Thirteen sizes from 3.0 to 9.0 in half steps mean the measurement almost always lands on an available size rather than between two.

Endotracheal Tubes Need The Neighbours Ready

Eighteen sizes run 2.5 to 11. Standard practice is to prepare the calculated size plus one either side, because the calculation is a starting point. Uncuffed tubes are used where a cuff would press on a narrow paediatric airway, which is the other half of the paediatric sizing decision.

Laryngeal Masks Are Sized By Weight

Sizes 1 to 5 with 1.5 available, starting at size 1 for patients up to 5 kg. On the Qsafe range the maximum cuff inflation volume is fixed per size, at 5 ml for size 1 up to 40 ml for size 5, and over-inflating past that figure is a common cause of a poor seal rather than a better one.

Nasal Cannulas Are Sized And Styled

Adult, paediatric, infant and neonate, with four prong styles as standard, curved, flared and soft. On continuous long term therapy the prong style matters as much as the size, because the failure mode is irritation rather than leak.