Archie Brain

Archie Brain (born 2 July 1942) is a British anaesthetist best known as the inventor of the laryngeal mask (LMA). The LMA has been used over 300 million times worldwide in elective anaesthesia and emergency airway management.

Early life and education Brain was born in Kobe, Japan, on 2 July 1942, to British diplomatic parents. He was educated in Singapore, Japan and England before receiving a scholarship to Worcester College, Oxford, where he initially studied French and Spanish.

After completing his degree, he undertook preclinical medical studies at the Radcliffe Infirmary in Oxford and clinical training at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London, qualifying in 1970. He began training in anaesthesia at the Royal East Sussex Hospital in 1971 and obtained a Diploma in Anaesthetics in 1972. Brain became a Fellow of the Faculty of Anaesthetists of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland in 1977. His early research included experiments on the use of electromagnetic induction to inhibit nerve conduction and a 1982 publication on rapid anaesthetic induction for caesarean section.

Development of the laryngeal mask airway In 1981, while working as a lecturer in anaesthetics at the London Hospital, Brain began developing an airway device intended to provide a hands-free alternative to a face mask while avoiding some of the complications associated with tracheal intubation. His early prototypes used the inflatable cuff of a Goldman dental nasal mask, which he modified to fit around the laryngeal inlet.

After several years of further development and clinical testing, the LMA Classic entered commercial use in the United Kingdom in 1988. Brain later developed specialised versions of the device, including the LMA Flexible, Intubating Laryngeal Mask Airway, LMA ProSeal and LMA Supreme. Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Anaesthetists (1995). Honorary Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (2001). Medical Futures Lifetime Achievement Award (2007). DAS Macewen Medal from the Difficult Airway Society (2011).