Audit of Performance of Size 1.5 Proseal Laryngeal Mask Airways in Infants Less Than Six Months Undergoing Inguinal Herniotomy (Report‪)‬

The ProSeal Laryngeal Mask Airway (PLMA) was first described in 2000 as a modification of the classic LMA (cLMA) (1). Studies have shown the PLMA to be an effective airway device in children during both spontaneous and positive pressure ventilation (2-8), and more recently as an alternative to tracheal intubation for laparoscopic surgery (9). However, data on clinical use of the size 1.5 PLMA is limited (7,9,10). The PLMA has several advantages over the cLMA, namely an improved cuff seal, reducing gastric inflation and enabling positive pressure ventilation at higher pressures. The PLMA drain tube allows gastric contents (including air) to be drained, enables diagnosis of malposition and facilitates early identification and treatment of gastric regurgitation (11). The PLMA is Conformite Europeenne (CE) marked and therefore licenced for use throughout the European Union, and was only made available in the UK in 2007.