Dexmedetomidine decreases requirement of thiopentone sodium and pentazocine followed with improved recovery in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Abstract

Background:Pain relief remains the most fundamental and consequential aspect of surgery for patients throughout perioperative period. Dexmedetomidine has created an interest in α2-adrenoceptor agonists in the management of pain and hence the aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the drug in hilly population of North India.Materials and Methods:Patients, irrespective of gender, were randomly allocated to two groups, control and test, each having 30 patients. Test group received an infusion of dexmedetomidine at a rate of 0.5 μg/kg/h 30 min before induction and 0.6 μg/kg/h after inducing anesthesia. Control patients received a volume-matched infusion of normal saline as placebo. Approximately 2 min before induction, analgesia was provided in the form of pentazocine, 0.5 mg/kg in control and 0.3 mg/kg in the test group. Induction was performed by 2 mg/kg thiopentone sodium supplemented with intravenous boluses of 25 mg thiopentone sodium every 15 s until loss of eyelid reflex (determined every 15 s). Induction dose of thiopentone sodium and total pentazocine dose were recorded. Recovery was assessed on the clinical recovery score (CRS) scale.Results:Infusion of dexmedetomidine decreased the induction dose of thiopentone approximately by 33% and of pentazocine dose by approximately 39% in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Moreover, incidence of pain was also decreased significantly. Improved CRS from 4.33 to 6.87 was noticed immediately post-operatively in dexmedetomidine group of patients.Conclusion:Infusion of dexmedetomidine during the laparoscopic cholecystectomy decreases the requirement of thiopentone sodium and pentazocine and leads to early recovery of patients.