High-Flow Nasal Cannula (HFNC) Preoxygenation in Obese Patients Undergoing General Anesthesia

Effectiveness of High-Flow Nasal Cannula (HFNC) Preoxygenation in Obese Patients Undergoing General Anesthesia: A Randomised Controlled Trial

This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the High Flow Nasal Cannula (HFNC) for the preoxygenation of obese patients undergoing a general anesthesia. The HFNC interface is compared to a standard anesthesia FaceMask (FM) preoxygenation with Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP), the current gold standard procedure for obese induction.

The interest of HFNC preoxygenation is to increase the "safe apnea time" before critical arterial desaturation, useful in the management of difficult airways, especially in subjects with reduced respiratory reserves such as the obese.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Surgery with the need for general anesthesia with muscle relaxation
• ASA (American Society of Anesthesiologists) physical status score II-III
• BMI > 35

Exclusion Criteria:

• Severe respiratory disease (acute respiratory failure, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease COPD, parenchymal pneumopathies,...)
• Severe nasal pathology (malformation, stenosis)
• Criteria or previous difficult intubation
• BMI > 50
• Chest circumference > 150cm
• Implanted electronic device (pacemaker, neurostimulator, ...)
• Pregnancy