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Pretreatment with sufentanil reduces myoclonus after etomidate
Author(s) -
Hueter L.,
Schwarzkopf K.,
Simon M.,
Bredle D.,
Fritz H.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
acta anaesthesiologica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.738
H-Index - 107
eISSN - 1399-6576
pISSN - 0001-5172
DOI - 10.1034/j.1399-6576.2003.00081.x
Subject(s) - etomidate , medicine , sufentanil , anesthesia , myoclonus , placebo , heart rate , blood pressure , propofol , alternative medicine , pathology
Background: Myoclonic movements are a common problem during the induction of general anesthesia with etomidate. We investigated the influence of pretreatment with the opioid sufentanil on the incidence of etomidate‐induced myoclonus. Methods: Forty female patients (ASA physical status I–III) were randomly assigned to receive double‐blinded either 0.3 µg kg −1 of sufentanil or placebo 150 s before the induction of sleep with 0.3 mg kg −1 of etomidate. The patients were observed for any myoclonic movement. Grade of dizziness, breathing frequency, non‐invasive blood pressure and heart rate were measured during the study period. Results: None of the 20 patients receiving sufentanil had myoclonic movements after the administration of etomidate, whereas 16 patients in the placebo group (80%) experienced such movements ( P< 0.01). No cases of apnoea before induction of sleep were seen in the sufentanil group. Conclusion: Sufentanil 0.3 µg kg −1 is an effective and safe drug to reduce myoclonus after etomidate without causing any harmful side‐effect.