Stabilisation of an Endotracheal Tube for the Adult Intensive Care ...

The consequences of migration or movement of an ETT within a patient’s airway can include
patient discomfort and pain, inadequate ventilation and tracheal damage however no
reference or research was found indicating a consensus regarding the accepted safe level of
ETT movement. ETT movement may be from side to side or ‘in and out’ of the airway (often
referred to as telescoping) and movement in either direction is a significant source of
discomfort for the patient and may cause damage to the skin and mucosal lining of the
trachea. The recommendation of 1cm maximum movement is based on consultation with
intensive care medical specialists and group consensus of GDN members. For this guideline
an ETT that moves more than 1cm is considered to be unstable and the method should be
renewed as soon as prioritised given other factors such as:
1. The amount of ETT movement;
2. Patient’s general condition especially respiratory and cardiovascular status;
3. Patient movement for procedures or transport outside the ICU; and
4. Other life saving procedures.
Assessment of restrictiveness of ETT tapes or devices is open to interpretation. The
recommendation to use one or two fingers is included in a number of CPGs sourced from
across NSW ICU [see
http://intensivecare.hsnet.nsw.gov.au/five/staffonly/guidelines_type_ventilation.php].
During discussions a number of concerns were raised regarding this particular practice
including the subjective nature of this measure, differences in patients’ facial skin integrity
and the potential for facial swelling. However although the recommendation is made to
ensure two fingers can be inserted between skin and cotton tapes this should be applied
with caution and other recommendations taken into consideration.
A daily CXR is a common investigation both to identify the development or resolution of
pathological lung changes and to check the position of the endotracheal and nasogastric
tube. The optimal position of the ETT measured fiberoptically is between 2.5–4 cm above
the carina (Evron, Weisenberg et al. 2007). Migrations of the ETT further down the trachea
risks injury to the carina and/or endobronchial intubation, a potentially catastrophic
complication. Conversely if the ETT is not positioned far enough down the trachea there are
several risks including: vocal cord injury as the cuff impacts on the vocal cords; inadequate
ventilation; patient agitation due to discomfort; and unexpected extubation. Therefore for
most patients the ETT position on CXR should be checked before the ETT stabilisation
method is changed to ensure the ETT is in the optimal position. It is also common practice
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