The use of the laryngeal mask airway for inter-hospital transport of infants with type 3 laryngotracheo-oesophageal clefts

Type 3 laryngotracheo-oesophageal clefts are rare congenital anomalies with a high mortality, In the past, transport of such infants to tertiary centr es for surgical correction has proved extremely difficult, with the child's ventilatory status often deteriorating to such an extent that ultimate sur gical intervention has not proved possible. We describe two cases of succes sful inter-hospital transfer of infants with type 3 laryngotracheo-oesophag eal clefts using the laryngeal mask airway.