How to place a supraglottic airway
Other platforms explain it with text and video. In Making Synapses you practice it on the patient.
A supraglottic airway sits above the vocal cords and is faster to place than a tube. Confirmation is the step that cannot be skipped.
Step by step
Ventilate first
Open the airway and ventilate with a bag-valve mask and oxygen while a partner prepares the device. [1]
Choose and check the device
Size by the maker's weight or height chart. Check the cuff if it has one and lubricate the back. [1]
Position
Head neutral or slightly sniffing, unless a spine injury is possible. [1]
Insert
Open the mouth, slide the device along the hard palate until it stops or the teeth reach the mark. Keep the pause in ventilation as short as possible. [1]
Inflate if needed
Inflate the cuff with the volume the maker states, or none for a gel-type device. [1]
Confirm
Ventilate: chest rises, breath sounds on both sides, no sounds over the stomach, and a waveform on capnography. [1]
Secure and reassess
Secure the device and recheck placement after every patient move. [1]
Common errors
- Long pause without ventilation.
- Skipping capnography to confirm.
- Not rechecking after moving the patient.
Practice it in Making Synapses
In Making Synapses you do this on the patient, not on paper: every step goes on the checklist with a score, and in Teach mode Blocky tells you what comes next.
Making Synapses cases that train this skill
- Acute respiratory distress syndrome
- Cardiac arrest, ventricular fibrillation
- Airway management, unresponsive patient
- Ventilator patient transfer
- Fentanyl overdose in the field
- Newborn respiratory distress
22 Making Synapses cases train this skill: open the case library
Sources
Facts and steps follow NREMT psychomotor skill sheets (EMT and Paramedic). Making Synapses is not affiliated with these organizations. Updated: 2026-10-11.