Separate lung ventilation is obtained with selective intubation of the main bronchus by an appropriate cuffed tube inserted through a standard orotracheal tube. Ventilation is carried out separately through the bronchial tube on one side and the residual tracheal tube lumen on the other side. This method, used in 144 patients, greatly simplifies the technique of bronchial intubation and offers many advantages over commercially available double-lumen tubes.