Bougie or Stylet In Patients Undergoing Intubation Emergently (BOUGIE)

Complications are common during tracheal intubations performed outside of the operating room. Successful intubation on the first attempt has been associated with a lower rate of procedural complications, but the proportion of critically ill patients intubated on the first attempt during tracheal intubations outside of the operating room is less than 90%. The bougie, a thin semi-rigid tube that can be placed into the trachea, allowing a Seldinger-like technique of intubating a patient's airway, has been traditionally reserved for difficult or failed airways. However, a recent single center trial of adult patients intubated in an emergency department demonstrated that use of the bougie on the first attempt improved intubation success, compared to use of a traditional stylet. Theinvestigators propose a multi-center randomized trial to compare first-attempt bougie use versus endotracheal tube with stylet use for tracheal intubation of critically ill adults in the ED and ICU.