A healthy 24-year-old woman is scheduled to undergo a diagnostic hysteroscopy with general anesthesia. You choose a first-generation laryngeal mask airway (LMA) for airway management. According to a recent study, risk of which of the following would MOST likely be reduced if you use a lower cuff pressure (20 cm H2O) compared to a higher cuff pressure (60 cm H2O)?
LMAs have gained widespread support for use in airway management during general anesthesia since their introduction into clinical practice in the late 1980s. Forming a proper seal with the cuff of the LMA and the surrounding periglottic tissue is crucial for generating and maintaining adequate alveolar ventilation. If an inadequate seal is formed in the oral cavity, air may leak from the oral cavity, but if an inadequate seal is formed near the distal tip of the LMA, this may result in propagation of air toward...