ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION Anesthesia for obstetrics is considered by many to be a high-risk subspecialty of anesthesiology, which is laden with clinical challenges and medicolegal liability [1]. Obstetric anesthesia-related complications are the sixth leading cause of pregnancy-related maternal mortality in the United States [2]. The vast majority of anesthesiarelated maternal deaths occur under general anesthesia [1-13]. Most general anesthesia-related maternal deaths are attributed to failed intubation, failed ventilation/ oxygenation, and/or pulmonary aspiration of gastric contents [1-13]. Predisposing factors include non-pregnancy-related maternal conditions (e.g., difficult airway and obesity), pregnancy-related maternal conditions (e.g., pregnancy-induced hypertension), and/or emergent circumstances requiring expeditious surgical delivery of the fetus (e.g., fetal distress) [12]. Ezri et al. created “the inverted traffic light”—a simple, difficult obstetric airway algorithm [3] (Figure 18.1).
