Prospective review of airway management incidents in adult anesthesia care

Prospective Assessment Project of AirwaY Management-related Incidents in Adult Anaesthesia Care (PAPAYA III) - A European Multicentre Cross-sectional Observational Study

Observational Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern · NCT06117176

This project will record airway management for adults having anesthesia at several hospitals to see how often and what types of airway problems happen.

Quick facts

Study typeObservational
Enrollment40000 (estimated)
Ages18 Years and up
SexAll
SponsorInsel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern Academic / other
Locations5 sites (Berlin and 4 other locations)
Trial IDNCT06117176 on ClinicalTrials.gov

What this trial studies

This is a prospective, observational, cross-sectional multi-centre project collecting data on anaesthetic airway management over a three-month period across participating European hospitals. Anesthesia teams will complete a brief screening form for every adult patient who receives airway management, and routine anaesthesia records will be extracted for patient characteristics and procedural details. When an airway-related incident occurs, the provider completes an additional detailed form to capture what happened and how it was resolved. The pooled data will be analyzed to identify common problems and generalisable interventions to improve airway safety.

Who should consider this trial

Good fit: Adults (18 years or older) undergoing any form of airway management during elective, semi-elective, urgent or emergency anesthesia at a participating site who have given appropriate consent are eligible.

Not a fit: Patients under 18, those not undergoing airway management, or those who refuse consent will not be included and therefore will not benefit directly from participation.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, the project could reduce airway-related harm by identifying common incident types and practical changes that improve patient safety.

How similar studies have performed: Previous multicenter airway incident registries and earlier PAPAYA projects have identified risk factors and practice gaps, though interventional evidence to change outcomes remains limited.

Eligibility criteria

Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria
Inclusion Criteria:

* All adult patients requiring airway management under anaesthesia care for elective, semi-elective, urgent or emergency diagnostic procedures or interventions. Airway management includes awake and asleep tracheal intubation, insertion of supraglottic airway devices, and face mask ventilation.
* Patients older than 18 years of age
* Informed consent given or general consent in place, according to local ethics committee requirements.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Refusal to give consent or withdrawal of consent.
* Patients \<18 years.

Where this trial is running

Berlin and 4 other locations

Study contacts

How to participate

  1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
  2. Visit the official trial page on ClinicalTrials.gov for the most current contact information and recruitment status.
  3. Contact the listed study coordinator or principal investigator to request pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.
Conditions Airway Complication of AnesthesiaAdverse EventsIntubation, IntratrachealAnesthesiologyDifficult AirwayCritical events
Last reviewed 2026-06-10 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.