Comparison of Efficacy of Laryngeal Mask Versus I-Gel Airway Devices

Background: Adequate ventilation is the primary goal of general anesthesia. A variety of supra-glottic airway devices were introduced to simplify airway management and minimize complications.Objective: To compare the Laryngeal mask airway versus I-Gel in terms of insertion time, number of successful insertion attempts, and changes in hemodynamic parameters in patients getting general anesthesia.Material and Methods: This comparative study was performed at the Anesthesia department, Pir Abdul Qadir Shah Institute of Medical Sciences, Gambat from 1st July 2020 to 31st December 2020. Patients achieving the inclusion criteria were divided into two groups. In Group-A, the I-Gel device was used for airway maintenance; while in Group-B, the Laryngeal Mask Airway(LMA) was used. The mean insertion time, insertion attempts, and hemodynamic parameters were recorded and compared in both groups.Results: Total number of participants studied was 140; with 70 participants in each group. The mean age was 33.74+6.75 years in Group-A and 33.16+7.24 years in Group-B. Gender distribution showed 62.86 % (n=44) male in Group-A and 64.29% (n=45) in Group-B. A comparison of LMA versus I-Gel showed a mean insertion time of 22.81+3.09 seconds in Group-A and 31.53+2.46 seconds in Group-B (p<0.0001). The number of successful insertion attempts and the changes in the hemodynamic parameters was comparable in both groups (p>0.05).Conclusion: This study concluded that the I-Gel device has a significantly low insertion time compared to LMA in elective settings. So, its use can be handy in emergency settings.Keywords: I-Gel, LMA, General anesthesia, insertion time.