A laryngeal-mask airway device including provision for drainage of the esophagus including an inflatable main-cuff and a backplate having a laryngeal-side and a pharyngeal-side. The backplate also has an external tube joint adjacent to the proximal region of the main-cuff. The backplate is hermetically bonded to the periphery of the main-cuff establishing separation between a laryngeal-chamber region and a pharyngeal region. A distally open evacuation tube includes a distal portion which longitudinally traverses the interior of the distal region of the main-cuff in sealed relation therewith for operative engagement and communication with the inlet of the oesophagus. The evacuation tube traverses the laryngeal-chamber region generally adjacent to the laryngeal-side of the backplate and passages through a proximally located tube-joint to the pharyngeal region. An airway tube also extends into the tube joint for communication with an airway port to provide a flowpath between the airway tube and laryngeal-chamber region.
