OK - for reason(s) unknown, the last time they tried to run a tube up my nose, it ran into a serious block.
The fact that I am aware of this tells you it didn’t work - the “cooperative but no memory” drug wore off.
There were at least 5 attempts AFTER I became aware of the proceedings.
It felt like the tube hit bone at the back of my skull about even with my eyes.
We ended up with blood on me and the gurney, but no tube.
If this is found to be permanent, how big a problem would surgery or other treatment become?
Very little. They can run it straight down your throat, as long as you’re not aware. In an emergency situation they could just cut through the front of your neck and make a hole directly into your windpipe.
Does being unconscious suppress the gag reflex?
Intubation for breathing is normally done via the mouth, unless the mouth is otherwise occupied for something like maxillofacial surgery.
Tubes inserted via the nose are usually headed for the stomach for things like long-term feeding, administering charcoal and/or lavage for poisoning cases or oddball things like esophageal manometry and pH monitoring to asses gastric reflux.
What were you having done that involved sedation and going up your nose with a rubber hose?
Need more information from the OP. Intubation usually refers to an endotracheal (ET) tube being placed through the mouth, throat, and larynx into the trachea. There’s nothing up the nose unless they have to scope via that route to visualize the passage (not usual).
I’m a patient who has to be awake for intubation. I cannot be intubated if I’m unconscious and have to wear a medical alert bracelet because of it. I need a pediatric tube and have to be drugged but awake enough to help by swallowing due to an unusually curved airway. The only time I’ve had surgery it took 5 anesthesiologists 2 hours to figure it out and wake me up to finally get the tube placed. My surgery went great, but the airway trauma kept me in the hospital an extra two days.
There is a protocol on the books for awake intubation, which will need to be followed if I ever need surgery again. This may be something the OP should discuss with your doctors.
If you have nasal blockage that needs to be checked out, an endoscopy of your sinuses should probably be the next step. Whatever tube was going up there, they could possibly also place it using an endoscope, and possibly just didn’t have one available at the time of your procedure.
As stated, intubation is normally done through the mouth. For most surgeries, the patient is completely unconscious before they insert the tube. The last surgery I had, the recovery from my sore throat from the intubation was worse than the surgical area.
This was ER - they wanted to scope my stomach (anal bleeding).
Don’t remember more than that - they never did the scope unless they sneaked me another mickey and went in the mouth. This was 20 or so years ago.
The duodenal ulcer was found on a scheduled scope (oral) years later.
