Since early recorded use of the endotracheal catheter for controlled ventilation of the lung and protection of the airway from aspiration, the protection of airway integrity has been inconsistently obtained and not without significant morbidity.

Trauma is the leading cause of death between the ages of 1 and 40. The three most common causes of trauma related death are inadequate ventilation, inadequate circulation and massive hemorrhage. Thus high priority must be given to airway management, breathing and circulation. The efficiency of the former is essential to optimal circulatory adjustment. No presently available instrument fulfills these needs within a single system.