The effect of low dose dexmedetomidine on emergence agitation after adenotossillec-tomy and/or adenoidectomy in children by sevoflurane anesthesia

Objective To observe the effect of low dose dexmedetomidine on emergence agitation after tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy in children with sevoflurane anesthesia.Methods Ninety children,aged 2 y-8 y,ASA Ⅰ-Ⅱ,undergoing adenotonsillectomy and/or Adenoidectomy,were randomly divided into two groups:the dexmedetomidine group(D group,n=45) and the saline group (S group,n =45).Anesthesia was maintained with sevoflurane and oxygen.D group patients were given dexmedetomidine 0.3 μg/kg (in 10 min) and maintained with 0.2 μg·kg-1 ·h-1.The S group was given the same dosage saline.Intraoperative hemodynamics were recorded every 5 min.Time of spontaneous breathing,time of extubation,and the emergence agitation in PACU were recorded.Results The incidence of emergence agitation was 28.89％ in group D,and 64.44 ％ in group S,the mean agitation scores in the D group were lower than the S group except at 10 min.Conclusions So low dose dexmedetomidine could reduce the emergence agitation in children receiving sevoflurane undergoing tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy. Key words: Dexmedetomidine;  Sevoflurane;  Adenotosillectomy;  Adenoidectomy;  Children;  Emergence agitation