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Emergency Medicine & First Aid vocabulary · The Emergency Department

Intubation

Meaning in emergency medicine & first aid, with examples

/ˌɪntuːˈbeɪʃən/nounAdvanced term

In emergency medicine & first aid, intubation means: Placing a tube through the mouth or nose into the windpipe so that the airway is protected and a machine or bag can breathe for the patient.

In Turkish: entübasyon

How it is used

Done by doctors and, in some systems, by paramedics. Staff talk about intubating or, informally, 'tubing' a patient, and about rapid sequence induction or intubation (RSI) when drugs are used. Removing the tube is 'extubation'.

Example sentences

  1. His GCS is 6, so we're preparing for intubation.

  2. Intubation was difficult because of blood in the airway.

Common collocations

  • rapid sequence intubation
  • difficult intubation
  • prepare for intubation
  • failed intubation
  • airwayThe passage that air travels through from the nose and mouth to the lungs; in emergencies, the question is whether it is open or blocked.
  • bag-valve-maskA hand-held device with a self-inflating bag and a face mask, squeezed to push air or oxygen into the lungs of someone who is not breathing adequately.
  • crash cartA trolley on wheels that holds the equipment and drugs needed for resuscitation, such as a defibrillator, airway kit and emergency medicines.
  • resusAn informal short form of resuscitation, used especially for the resuscitation room of an emergency department, where the sickest patients are treated.

More terms: The Emergency Department

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.