IS NORMAL SALINE AN ACCEPTABLE ALTERNATIVE TO SILICONE FOR LUBRICATING FIBRESCOPES

This article describes a model designed to measure the forces acting o n a fibrescope when it is pushed through an endotracheal tube. Lubrica tion with either silicone or normal saline leads to a reduction in fri ction forces. Fibrescopes lubricated with normal saline require a larg er force to be advanced through endotracheal tubes when compared to si licone; however, the difference is clinically unimportant and is outwe ighed by the advantageous properties of normal saline. A theoretical m odel is presented which is in close agreement with experimentally deri ved data.