摘要：Surgical cricothyroidotomy is considered to be the last resort for management of the difficult airway. A major point for a successful surgical cricothyroidotomy is to identify the location of the cricothyroid membrane. We encountered a patient with progressive respiratory distress who was anticipated to have a difficult airway due to a large neck abscess. We prepared for both awake intubation and surgical cricothyroidotomy. The cricothyroid membrane could not be identified by palpation, but was readily identified using ultrasound. Ultrasound-guided identification of the cricothyroid membrane may be useful in a patient with a difficult airway due to neck swelling.
