Incidence of cognitive errors in difficult airway management: an inference human factors study from the Pediatric Difficult Intubation Registry

Citation:
Bordini M, Orsini L, Li SYW, Olsen J, ……..  Von Ungern-Sternberg BS, Fiadjoe J, et al. Incidence of cognitive errors in difficult airway management: an inference human factors study from the Pediatric Difficult Intubation Registry. Br J Anaesth. 2025.

Keywords:
Airway management; bias; cognitive error; difficult airway; human factors; human performance; medical error; paediatric difficult airway.

Abstract:
Cognitive errors are known contributors to poor decision-making in healthcare. However, their incidence and extent of their contribution to negative outcomes during difficult airway management are unknown. We aimed to identify cognitive errors during paediatric difficult airway management using data from the Pediatric Difficult Intubation (PeDI) registry, to determine patient and clinician factors associated with these errors, and their contribution to complications.