Designing an ergonomic neonatal laryngoscope
Project Goal
Redesign the handle of a neonatal laryngoscope to improve ergonomics and reduce strain for healthcare workers during neonatal intubation
​
Context
Neonatal intubation in the NICU requires precision, speed, and a significant amount of force on your hand. The traditional cylindrical handle offers little ergonomic accommodation, forcing clinicians into uncomfortable wrist extension and flexion during a high-stakes procedure.
Research and understanding the problem
Our team of three conducted field research with clinicians, including a neonatologist at Stanford Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. We observed neonatal intubation firsthand and practiced the procedure ourselves using a neonatal manikin.
​
To ground my design decisions, I created a hierarchical task analysis of neonatal intubation and identified critical moments where grip, wrist posture, and force application mattered most. I then mapped relevant hand anthropometrics to these tasks to translate clinical needs into measurable design constraints.
Key insight: the cylindrical handle requires an awkward grip while users apply significant force, leading to wrist strain and reduced comfort during an already delicate procedure
We came up with the following design requirements to redesign a laryngoscope handle:
​
-
Handle length ≥ 95th percentile male metacarpal grip length
-
Handle diameter ≤ 5th percentile female maximum internal grip diameter
-
Must allow clear visualization of the vocal cords
-
Support upward force without compromising precision
-
Preserve blade performance, visibility, and speed
-
Fixed angle between handle and blade (typically ~90°)
-
Allow flexible grip repositioning during use
We explored grooved handle designs across two dimensions: number of thumb grooves and degree of groove definition.
Prototyping and User Testing
I built a series of foam prototypes and conducted user testing focused on wrist comfort, grip stability, precision, and grip flexibility.
Users consistently preferred handles with guided but flexible grip zones, allowing natural repositioning and reducing finger crowding. I translated these insights into a final CAD model that improves ergonomic support while remaining compatible with existing neonatal laryngoscope blades.
