Emergency department airway management-2026: EMAT clinical policy guideline.
Turkish Journal of Emergency Medicine · 2026-01-01 · Guideline / consensus
Abstract
This clinical policy was developed by Emergency Medicine Association of Türkiye (EMAT) to evaluate current evidence on airway management in the emergency department (ED) and to provide clinicians with practical, evidence-based recommendations. Although rapid sequence intubation in the ED is a life-saving intervention in critically ill patients, the choice of techniques and medications during its implementation has a decisive impact on patient safety and clinical outcomes. This policy was developed by the research committee (RC) using the "Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations (GRADE)" methodology, based on systematic literature reviews and expert opinion. Within the framework of five key clinical questions, the following topics were examined: preoxygenation strategies (noninvasive mechanical ventilation, high-flow nasal oxygen, face mask, and conventional techniques); the effectiveness and safety of apneic oxygenation; the use of a gum elastic bougie during intubation; the role of push-dose vasopressors in patients at high risk of hypotension; and the safety of ketamine use in patients at risk of increased intracranial pressure. This policy aims to reduce complications related to airway management and improve patient outcomes by providing emergency physicians with an evidence-based framework for preintubation preparation, medication selection, and equipment use.
Abstract © the authors or publisher, via PubMed. Reuse and removal
Tags
Anaesthetics · Cardiovascular drugs · CPAP & NIV · High-flow nasal oxygen · Endotracheal intubation · Ketamine · Rapid sequence intubation · Vasopressors
Related articles
- Clinical outcomes after a single induction dose of etomidate versus ketamine for emergency department sepsis intubation: a randomized controlled trial. (Sci Rep, 2023)
- Ketamine Versus Etomidate for Rapid Sequence Intubation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials. (Crit Care Med, 2025)
- [Emergency anesthesia, airway management and ventilation in major trauma. Background and key messages of the interdisciplinary S3 guidelines for major trauma patients]. (Anaesthesist, 2011)
- A Comparison of Australasian Jurisdictional Ambulance Services’ Paramedic Clinical Practice Guidelines Series: Adult Sepsis (Paramedicine, 2021)
- Does the addition of fentanyl to ketamine improve haemodynamics, intubating conditions or mortality in emergency department intubation: A systematic review. (Acta Anaesthesiol Scand, 2019)
- Collective Review of the Status of Rapid Sequence Intubation Drugs of Choice in Trauma in Low- and Middle-Income Settings (Prehospital, Emergency Department and Operating Room Setting). (World J Surg, 2017)