Direct laryngoscopy (DL) is the traditional approach for emergency intubation but video laryngoscopy (VL) is gaining popularity. Some studies have demonstrated higher first-attempt success with VL, particularly in difficult airways. In real-world settings, physicians choose whether or not to view the video screen when utilizing VL devices for tracheal intubation. Therefore, we sought to determine whether screen viewing is associated with higher intubation first-attempt success in clinical practice.

In this retrospective, observational investigation, we studied consecutive adult emergency department intubations at an urban, academic medical center during the calendar year 2013. Cases were identified from the electronic medical record and analyzed using standard video review methodology. We compared first-attempt success rates when standard geometry Macintosh VL was used, stratified by whether the screen was viewed or not.

Of the 593 cases with videos available for review, 515 (87%) were performed with a standard geometry Macintosh video laryngoscope. First-attempt success was not significantly different when the screen was viewed (195/207; 94% [95%CI 91–97]) compared to when the screen was not viewed (284/301; 94% [95%CI 92–97]). The median first-attempt duration was longer when the screen was viewed compared to when the screen was not viewed (45 versus 33 s; median difference 12 s [95%CI 10–15 s]).

In this study of orotracheal intubations performed by emergency physicians with Macintosh-style VL, the first-attempt success rate was high. The success rate was similar whether or not the intubating physician chose to view the video screen.