In a patient with signs of hypoxia, which airway device is most appropriate?

• A. Nasal cannula
• B. Bag-valve-mask
• C. Non-rebreather mask
• D. Oropharyngeal airway

Answer: (B)

When hypoxia is present, the priority is to secure airway and provide ventilation as well as oxygen. A bag-valve-mask can deliver both: it provides positive-pressure breaths to ventilate the patient and delivers a high concentration of oxygen from the attached source. This is crucial if the patient isn’t breathing adequately or is apneic, helping to rapidly improve oxygen delivery to the tissues.

In contrast, a nasal cannula gives only low-flow oxygen and doesn’t assist with breathing work. A non-rebreather mask supplies high oxygen to a patient who is breathing on their own but still doesn’t provide ventilation support. An oropharyngeal airway helps keep the airway open but does not ventilate by itself; it generally needs to be used with a bag-valve-mask to deliver breaths.

So the bag-valve-mask is the best choice because it both oxygenates and ventilates, addressing the underlying issue of insufficient ventilation in hypoxia.