Product Code: ILSC2007_1004

Another Airway Fire: When Will Such Accidents Cease?
Authors:
Richard Hughes, High-Rez Diagnostics, Inc.; Camino CA USA
Presented at ILSC 2007

The information available to the author indicates that the only fatalities resulting from the use of lasers have resulted from medical laser procedures and that endotracheal tube fires occurring during laser surgery have been the most prevalent cause of death and serious injury in the hospital setting. The endotracheal tube fire case presented in this paper is the second such case for which the author has served as an expert witness. The first case was presented at ILSC-2003 and in that paper the question "When will laser-induced airway fires cease?" was posed. As the case herein described was settled out of court this year (2006), it is most appropriate to ask this question again. Both the immediate and root causes for the endotracheal tube fire described below and such fires in general will be presented along with suggested (again and expanded) solutions.