In trauma airway management: which maneuver is recommended to open airway while maintaining cervical spine precautions?

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Opening the airway in a trauma patient with suspected cervical spine injury requires a maneuver that doesn’t move the neck. The jaw-thrust achieves this by lifting the mandible forward, which displaces the tongue from the back of the throat and open the airway while keeping the head in a neutral position (with the spine in-line). This preserves cervical spine precautions and reduces the risk of worsened injury, unlike the head-tilt chin-lift, which requires extending the neck and can compromise the spine. Suctioning helps clear secretions but does not by itself open the airway. Intubation may be needed for definitive airway management, but the maneuver described here specifically addresses immediate airway patency without neck movement, which is why the jaw-thrust is the appropriate choice.