TY - JOUR T1 - Removal of Endotracheal Tube Obstruction With a Secretion Clearance Device JF - Respiratory Care DO - 10.4187/respcare.02995 SP - respcare.02995 AU - Cristina Mietto AU - Kevin Foley AU - Lindsay Salerno AU - Jenna Oleksak AU - Riccardo Pinciroli AU - Jeremy Goverman AU - Lorenzo Berra Y1 - 2014/08/05 UR - http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/early/2014/08/05/respcare.02995.abstract N2 - Accumulation of secretions may suddenly occlude an endotracheal tube (ETT), requiring immediate medical attention. The endOclear catheter (Endoclear LLC, Petoskey, Michigan) is a novel device designed to clear mucus and debris from an ETT and restore luminal patency. We present 3 subsequent cases of life-threatening partial ETT occlusions recorded over a period of 6 months at Massachusetts General Hospital. After conventional methods (standard tracheal suctioning and bronchoscopy) failed, the endOclear was used, with successful restoration of the airways in all 3 cases. The respiratory conditions rapidly improved, and all 3 patients tolerated the ETT-cleaning maneuver. These results show that such a device is safe and easy to use during an emergency airway situation for efficient and rapid removal of secretions from obstructed ETTs by respiratory therapists. ER -