Medical

Status epilepticus airway

Before / During / After / Pitfalls

Before

• Treat seizure aggressively per protocol and correct hypoxia/hypoglycemia.
• Prepare suction and aspiration precautions; check jaw/tongue trauma.
• Plan hemodynamics and continuous sedation/anti-seizure strategy after tube.

During

• Rapid oxygenation/ventilation and tube confirmation.
• Avoid hypotension and prolonged apnea.
• Coordinate ongoing antiseizure therapy rather than treating intubation as definitive seizure control.

After

• Continuous sedation/antiepileptic pathway, temperature/glucose/electrolyte evaluation.
• Ventilator and EtCO2 reassessment.
• Neuro/ICU pathway and debrief medication timing.

Pitfalls

• Stopping antiseizure care after tube placement.
• Aspiration without suction readiness.
• Hypotension from sedative stacking.