In a patient with suspected cervical spine injury, opening the airway should minimize movement.

In a patient with suspected cervical spine injury, opening the airway should minimize movement.

• A. Head tilt-chin lift
• B. Jaw-thrust maneuver
• C. Oropharyngeal airway
• D. Nasal airway

Answer: (B)

Opening the airway in someone with possible cervical spine injury must protect the neck while ensuring airway patency. The jaw-thrust maneuver accomplishes this by lifting the mandible forward to move the tongue away from the airway without extending or flexing the neck. With the neck kept in a neutral, stabilized position, it opens the airway effectively while minimizing cervical spine movement. By contrast, the head tilt–chin lift requires tilting the head back and lifting the chin, which can cause neck extension and increase movement at the cervical spine. An oropharyngeal airway or nasal airway can help maintain airflow, but they don’t actively open the airway in a way that preserves spinal alignment as reliably as the jaw-thrust does.

Opening the airway in someone with possible cervical spine injury must protect the neck while ensuring airway patency. The jaw-thrust maneuver accomplishes this by lifting the mandible forward to move the tongue away from the airway without extending or flexing the neck. With the neck kept in a neutral, stabilized position, it opens the airway effectively while minimizing cervical spine movement.

By contrast, the head tilt–chin lift requires tilting the head back and lifting the chin, which can cause neck extension and increase movement at the cervical spine. An oropharyngeal airway or nasal airway can help maintain airflow, but they don’t actively open the airway in a way that preserves spinal alignment as reliably as the jaw-thrust does.