[Flow pattern of respiratory gases in superimposed high-frequency jet ventilation (SHFJV) with the jet laryngoscope].

High-frequency ventilation techniques have been applied for a number of years for laryngeal surgery in order to ventilate patients without endotracheal tubes or catheters. A further development of high-frequency jet ventilation (HFJV) is the technique of superimposed HFJV (SHFJV), which was achieved by combining low- and high-frequency jet streams. Although good clinical results were observed, which have been published in the past, the clinical details of development of SHFJV have not been previously published. METHODS. In order to understand and study the mechanism of superimposition of a high-frequency jet stream, extensive experiments on a lung simulator at defined measuring points, which represented the operating field in microlaryngeal surgery and the trachea, were conducted prior to the clinical application of SHFJV. RESULTS. The measurements demonstrated that superposition of the two jet streams led to greater velocity during inspiration, and therefore produced an increase in tidal volume and entrainment of inspiratory gas. This demonstrates that it is possible to apply a HFJV technique in patients even with an open system. During expiration, the velocity of the low-frequency gas stream is decreased by the opposing flow of the high-frequency jet stream, leading to the buildup of positive end-expiratory pressure. The pulsations of the high-frequency jet stream induce continuous alveolar ventilation. The positioning of the jet nozzles in the jet laryngoscopy has the result that the velocities are already decreased at the tip of the laryngoscope and decrease further with distance from the nozzles. This prevents possible damage to the laryngeal mucosa.