Comparison the Effects of Intravenous Hydrocortisone and Dexamethasone before Extubation on Laryngospasm, Cough and Stridor after General Anesthesia

Aims After tracheal extubation, following the patient’ waking up from general anesthesia, respiratory physiological responses are with symptoms such as cough, laryngospasm, and stridor. Different medications are used to prevent these complications. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of intravenous hydrocortisone and dexamethasone on the respiratory side-effects before tracheal extubation. Materials & Methods In this two-blinded clinical trial, 108 patients candidate for orthopedic surgery, general surgery, and urology by general anesthesia hospitalized in Shahid Hashemi Nezhad and Bidaxt 15th Khordad hospitals were studied in Mashhad, Iran, in 2015. The subjects were selected via available sampling method. Randomized assignment was done by BBR. The first and the second groups received 100mg hydrocortisone and 8mg dexamethasone 30 minutes before tracheal extubation as one intravenous dosing, respectively. Individual information and clinical status were recorded based on the diagnoses by an anesthesiologist. Data was analyzed by SPSS 13 software using Chi-square, independent T, and Mann-Whitney tests. Findings There was no significant difference between dexamethasone and hydrocortisone groups in the frequencies of cough, laryngospasm, and stridor (p>0.05). There were significant differences between the mean weights of patients with laryngospasm (p=0.03), cough (p=0.002), and stridor (p=0.001) and the patients without such symptoms. There was no significant difference in gender between patients with stridor and laryngospasm and other patients without such symptoms (p>0.05), excluding patients with cough (p=0.003). Conclusion The effects of hydrocortisone and dexamethasone are similar on laryngospasm, cough, and stridor after tracheal extubation.