Effect of dexmedetomidine on anaesthesia recovery in patients undergoing gynaecological laparoscopic surgery

Objective To evaluate the effect of dexmedetomidine (DEX) on the anaesthesia recovery in patients undergoing gynaecological laparoscopic surgery.Methods Sixty patients scheduled for gynaecological laparoscopic surgery were randomly assigned to three groups (n=20 per group). Group D1 and group D2 received dexmedetomidine 0.4 μg/kg and 0.8 μg/kg infused 30 min before the end of surgery, respectively, while group C received equal volume of normal saline as control. Anesthesia was maintained with combined intravenous-inhalational technique in all groups. HR and MAP were recorded at the following time points: arriving at OR (T0), eyes opening (T1), tracheal extubation (T2), and discharge from PACU (T3); the time for emergence, extubation, and duration in PACU were also recorded. Ramsay sedation scale and Riker agitation scale during emergence and extubation, postoperative adverse events such as vomiting or shivering, and cases requiring analgesic rescue with fentanyl were recorded.Results Extubation time in group D1 and D2 was shorter than that in group C (P0.05). Cases requiring rescue dose of fentanyl in group D2 were fewer than those in group C (P0.05). Ramsay scores were higher and Riker scores were lower in group D2 than in group C and group D1 during emergence (P0.05). Compared with baseline HR at T0, HR was increased at T1 and T2 in group C, and at T2 in group D1 (P0.05), while changes of HR in group D2 had no significant difference. MAP at T2 was increased in group C, and was higher in group C and group D1 than in group D2 (P0.05), while changes of MAP in group D2 had no significance.Conclusion Dexmedetomidine 0.8 μg/kg administered 30 minutes before the end of gynaecological laparoscopic surgery could alleviate postoperative agitation and stabilize hemodynamics without prolonging the recovery time.