An Airway Management Apparatus (AMA) and method for aiding in airway patency/preventing airway obstruction under sedation in the supine position and other situations where tongue and jaw relaxation occurs, by maintaining the jaw thrust/chin lift position and neck extension. It is also useful when airway patency is compromised due to abnormal neuromuscular tone, redundant soft tissue or an increase in upper airway adipose tissue. The ARM Headrest includes lateral extensions which house the foam wedges to provide the mechanical jaw thrust maneuver when positioned under the mandibular angles. When strapped under the chin to perform the jaw thrust/chin lift maneuver, it is very effective in opening up the airway in a large population of patients who obstruct during sleep, sedation, etc. It also has a head and neck support having a partially concave and partially convex surface, respectively. The ARM headrest aids in airway patency and prevents/removes airway obstruction by providing the jaw thrust and/or chin lift maneuver thereby increasing the space between the pharyngeal wall and the base of the tongue, and by providing neck extension. The ARM Headrest adds a significant safety net in the arena of preventable respiratory depression and respiratory arrest caused by sedation in critical and non-critical settings. Undetected respiratory depression, airway obstruction, and respiratory arrest have resulted in death or hypoxic encephalopathy. This device helps to eradicate preventable airway obstruction with a simple modification of the common headrest.

A travel headrest, having first and second head cushions each having a top portion, a bottom portion and opposite sides and being elongate from the top portion to the bottom portion. The second head cushion portion includes an intermediate portion between its top and bottom portions and a flexible connecting portion interconnects the first head cushion and the intermediate portion, the top and bottom portions of the second head cushion projecting upwardly and downwardly, respectively, from the intermediate portion and from the connecting portion. The cushions may be stuffed or inflatable.

An Airway Management Apparatus (AMA) and method for easing the breathing and aiding the alignment of the oral, pharyngeal, and laryngeal axes of the airway of an obese individual in the supine position. The AMA includes an upper-body support, and a head and neck support having a partially concave and partially convex surface coupled to the upper-body support. The AMA eases breathing by raising the individual's upper body at an angle, causing the individual's abdominal mass to fall away from the diaphragm. The AMA provides a support for the individual's neck to be extended, and for the head to be rotated backwards, to aid in the alignment of the oral, pharyngeal, and laryngeal axes of the individual's airway.

An apparatus for maintaining airway passages open that includes a base and a horizontal bar member slidably connected to a U-shaped member attached to the base. A pair of posts having padded heads or end members for contacting the mandibular angle of a jaw of a person are rotationally attached to a bolt that extends from the base adjacent the end of the U-shaped member and a bolt that extends from the base proximate the end of the horizontal bar member. Rotation of the posts about the bolts allows for the adjustment of the height of the posts. The posts and bolts may also be pivoted to position the padded end members to correctly contact the jaw of the person. Sliding the horizontal bar member in relation to the U-shaped member allows for the distance between posts to be adjusted to accommodate the different sized heads of different people.

A head positioning device comprising: (A) a head support that is configured for supporting a patient's head; and (B) a sliding joint that is connected to allow the head support to be moved about a virtual axis of rotation while the head support is supporting the patient's head, wherein the virtual axis of rotation is spaced apart from the sliding joint. The head positioning device may include a head restraint for maintaining the patient's head in a substantially fixed relation to the head support as the head support is moved about the virtual axis of rotation. In one embodiment, the head restraint comprises a hook member that is configured for hookedly engaging a curved portion of the patient's face.