is intubation always used in general anesthesia?

Answer 1

Not always.

Securing of the airway is necessary but this may be a simple matter of manually holding the patient's jaw such that his or her natural breathing is unimpeded by the tongue or may demand the insertion of a prosthetic airway device such as a laryngeal mask airway or endotracheal tube. A variety of factors are considered when making this decision. The major issue is whether the patient requires an endotracheal tube.
Indications for endotracheal intubation under general anesthesia include the following:

Potential for airway contamination (full stomach, gastroesophageal [GE] reflux, gastrointestinal [GI] or pharyngeal bleeding)

Surgical need for muscle relaxation

Predictable difficulty with endotracheal intubation or where anesthetist's access to the airway during the case will be difficult (lateral or prone position)

Surgery of the mouth or face

Prolonged procedure anticipated

For a complete discussion of general anesthesia look at this:
http://www.emedicine.com/Plastic/topic110.htm

Answer 2

Almost always, though in some shorter cases under general anesthesia, a LMA may be used. An LMA is a laryngeal mask airway and does not go all the way down the throat...it fits in to the back of the mouth and blocks off the esophagus so that all air pumped in through the tube portion goes to the trachea. Otherwise, general anesthesia is pretty much always done with endotracheal intubation.

Answer 3

Maintenance of a patent airway is an essential prerequisite for the safe and successful conduct of general anaesthesia. Tracheal intubation (which i assume is what u mean) is the best method of providing and securing a clear airway in patients during anaesthesia and resuscitation in some procedures. However it is not the only method used and especially not in minor procedures. A facemask, sometimes with the adjunct of an oropharngeal airway or a nasopharnygeal airway, is used. There is also the possibility of using a laryngeal mask airway (LMA).

Answer 4

Not always. They do it more for major surgeries like cardiac or even joint replacements.

Answer 5

I think so.