seizure sticks

[BuckeyeFan]

It has been a few years since I was an EMT. But when I was, the oral airways in Bernard's picture above were standard protocol for respiratory distress. They are different than a bite stick as they have an air passage through the middle. I carried them in my equipment pack and used them quite often over the years. They are very simple to insert and are not a choking hazard. They are the interim to intubation.

NOTE: This was for use by TRAINED personnel and not the general public.

For seizures, the bite sticks were no longer protocol at the end of my 20 years as an EMT, though they were in the beginning. I can't say for sure when that changed or what the current protocols require. The oral airways above were not to be used for active seizures (we never put a finger in a clenched mouth), though we often had them inserted in serious trauma patients who later seized due to head injuries with no adverse problems.

I am going to check with some of my EMT friends to see what is current protocol.

 

[drarvindr]

NOTE: This was for use by TRAINED personnel and not the general public.For seizures, the bite sticks were no longer protocol at the end of my 20 years as an EMT, though they were in the beginning. I can't say for sure when that changed or what the current protocols require. The oral airways above were not to be used for active seizures (we never put a finger in a clenched mouth), though we often had them inserted in serious trauma patients who later seized due to head injuries with no adverse problems.

:agree: exactly my point. oral airways are not seizure sticks and since she was not actively seizing at the time , it was safe to insert and a good precautionary measure. If she had seized again and her mouth was clenched and she was not breathing , then they would have had to do a trach or worse a nasal intubation.