Which tools are commonly utilized to confirm the placement of an endotracheal tube?

The confirmation of the placement of an endotracheal tube is crucial to ensuring proper ventilation and oxygenation in patients. Auscultation, capnography, and visual inspection are the standard tools utilized for this purpose.

Auscultation involves listening to the lung sounds to verify that both lungs are aerating adequately, indicating that the tube is in the trachea and not in the esophagus. Capnography provides a quantitative measure of exhaled carbon dioxide levels, which is a reliable indicator that the tube is in the correct location. A presence of CO2 in the exhaled breath signifies that ventilation is occurring in the lungs. Visual inspection, often during intubation, allows clinicians to observe the tube's positioning visually, further confirming that it is placed correctly in the trachea.

Other options present methods or tools that are not directly effective in confirming the placement of an endotracheal tube. Blood pressure monitoring and pulse oximetry are important for assessing patient status but do not specifically confirm tube placement. Similarly, X-ray imaging and CT scans are more invasive and time-consuming methods that are not typically used for immediate confirmation of endotracheal tube placement in urgent situations. Lastly, suction devices and topical anesthetics