The importance of bronchoscopic anatomy for anesthesiologists

One-lung ventilation (OLV) is a sine qua non of thoracic surgery and requires knowledge and talent. Close familiarity with equipments used for OLV as well as bronchoscopy and respiratory tract anatomy is important for successful OLV. We aim to outline the bronchoscopic anatomy of the tracheobronchial tree and OLV equipment for anesthetists and thoracic surgeons in this review. The recorded preoperative and intraoperative bronchoscopic applications of the patients hospitalized in our Thoracic Surgery clinic for diagnosis and treatment have been evaluated from an anesthetist's perspective. Anatomic landmarks were identified in the bronchoscopic evaluation. Optimal and misplacement images of double-lumen tubes (DLT) and bronchial blockers (BB) used for OLV in our clinic were obtained via fiber optic bronchoscopy. While left lung isolation can be made more safely due to the anatomy of the left main bronchus, placement of both DLTs and BBs to the right main bronchus requires greater care. Success in OLV procedures would increase with anesthetists being well informed about the fiber optic bronchoscopic anatomy of the tracheobronchial tree and in close cooperation with the surgical team.