A pilot study of the efficacy of oral midazolam for sedation in pediatric dental patients. (17/1949)

Oral midazolam is being used for conscious sedation in dentistry with little documentation assessing its efficacy. In order to accumulate preliminary data, a randomized, double-blind, controlled, crossover, multi-site pilot study was conducted. The objective was to determine if 0.6 mg/kg of oral midazolam was an equally effective or superior means of achieving conscious sedation in the uncooperative pediatric dental patient, compared with a commonly used agent, 50 mg/kg of oral chloral hydrate. Twenty-three children in three clinics who required dentistry with local anesthetic and were determined to exhibit behavior rated as "negative" or "definitely negative" based on the Frankl scale were assessed. They were evaluated with respect to acceptance of medication; initial level of anxiety at each appointment; level of sedation prior to and acceptance of local anesthetic; movement and crying during the procedure; and overall behavior. The results showed that the group randomly assigned to receive midazolam had a significantly greater initial level of anxiety for that appointment (P < 0.02), a finding that could clearly confound further determination of the efficacy of these drugs. Patients given oral midazolam had an increased level of sedation prior to the administration of local anesthetic compared with those given chloral hydrate (P < 0.015). No statistically significant differences were noted in any of the other parameters. The age of the patient was found to have no correlation with the difference in overall behavior (r = -0.09). These preliminary data warrant further clinical trials.  (+info)

Comparison of recovery of propofol and methohexital sedation using an infusion pump. (18/1949)

Two sedative anesthetic agents administered by an infusion pump were compared during third molar surgery. Forty American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) class I or II volunteers were randomly allocated to two groups. All subjects received supplemental oxygen via a nasal hood, fentanyl (0.0007 mg/kg intravenous [i.v.] bolus), and midazolam (1 mg/2 min) titrated to effect. Patients then received either 0.3 mg/kg of methohexital or 0.5 mg/kg of propofol via an infusion pump. Upon completion of the bolus, a continuous infusion of 0.05 mg/kg/min methohexital or 0.066 mg/kg/min propofol was administered throughout the procedure. Hemo-dynamic and respiratory parameters and psychomotor performance were compared for the two groups and no significant differences were found. The continuous infusion method maintained a steady level of sedation. Patients receiving propofol had a smoother sedation as judged by the surgeon and anesthetist.  (+info)

Intranasal midazolam plasma concentration profile and its effect on anxiety associated with dental procedures. (19/1949)

The objectives of this study were to describe the serum concentration time profile for midazolam following intranasal administration to adult dental surgery patients and to ascertain the effect of midazolam on anxiety. Six female patients received a single 20 mg (0.32 to 0.53 mg/kg) dose of midazolam. Blood samples were collected at 5, 10, 20, 30, 45, and 60 min following dose administration. Midazolam plasma concentrations were determined by gas chromatography. Anxiety was evaluated using a 100-mm visual analogue scale. The maximum concentration of midazolam was reached 25.8 min (range 18 to 35 min) following dose administration. Maximum concentrations were variable. However, there was no relationship between the weight-adjusted dose and maximal concentration. Patients experiencing baseline anxiety exhibited a trend toward reduction in their measured anxiety score (P = 0.06). Plasma concentrations above the hypothesized minimum effective concentration for sedative effects were attained when midazolam was administered intranasally to adult dental patients.  (+info)

Comparing single and cumulative dosing procedures in human triazolam discriminators. (20/1949)

This study evaluated a cumulative dosing procedure for drug discrimination with human participants. Four participants learned to discriminate triazolam (0.35 mg/70 kg) from placebo. A crossover design was used to compare the results under a single dosing procedure with results obtained under a cumulative dosing procedure. Under the single dosing procedure, a dose of triazolam (0, 0.05, 0.15, or 0.35 mg/70 kg) or secobarbital (0, 25, 75, or 175 mg/70 kg) was administered 45 min before assessment. Determining each dose-effect curve thus required four sessions. Under the cumulative dosing procedure, four doses of triazolam (0, 0.05, 0.10, and 0.20 mg/70 kg) or secobarbital (0, 25, 50, and 100 mg/70 kg) were administered approximately 55 min apart, producing a complete dose-effect curve in one four-trial session. Regardless of procedure, triazolam and secobarbital produced discriminative stimulus and self-reported effects similar to previous single dosing studies in humans. Shifts to the right in cumulative dose-effect curves compared to single dose-effect curves occurred on several self-report measures. When qualitative stimulus functions rather than quantitative functions are of interest, application of cumulative dosing may increase efficiency in human drug discrimination.  (+info)

Comparison of oral chloral hydrate with intramuscular ketamine, meperidine, and promethazine for pediatric sedation--preliminary report. (21/1949)

Fifteen consecutive pediatric patients ranging from 3 to 5 years old were selected to receive one of three sedative/hypnotic techniques. Group 1 received oral chloral hydrate 50 mg/kg, and groups 2 and 3 received intramuscular ketamine 2 mg/kg and 3 mg/kg, respectively. In addition to ketamine, patients in groups 2 and 3 received transmucosal intramuscular injections of meperidine and promethazine into the masseter muscle. Sedation for the satisfactory completion of restorative dentistry was obtained for over 40 min on average in the chloral hydrate group, but completion of dental surgery longer than 40 min was achieved in groups 2 and 3 only by intravenous supplements of ketamine.  (+info)

Dental anesthetic management of a patient with ventricular arrhythmias. (22/1949)

During routine deep sedation for endodontic therapy, a dentist-anesthesiologist observed premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) on a 62-yr-old woman's electrocardiogram (EKG) tracing. The dentist was able to complete the root canal procedure under intravenous (i.v.) sedation without any problems. The dentist-anesthesiologist referred the patient for medical evaluation. She was found to be free from ischemic cardiac disease with normal ventricular function. The patient was cleared to continue her dental treatment with deep sedation. She subsequently continued to undergo dental treatment with deep intravenous sedation without incident, although her EKG exhibited frequent PVCs, up to 20 per minute, including couplets and episodes of trigeminy. This article will review indications for medical intervention, antiarrhythmic medications, and anesthetic interventions for perioperative PVCs.  (+info)

Effect of combined mouth closure and chin lift on upper airway dimensions during routine magnetic resonance imaging in pediatric patients sedated with propofol. (23/1949)

BACKGROUND: In pediatric patients, obstruction of the upper airway is a common problem during general anesthesia. Chin lift is a commonly used technique to improve upper airway patency. However, little is known about the mechanism underlying this technique. METHODS: The authors studied the effect of the chin lift maneuver on airway dimensions in 10 spontaneously breathing children (aged 2-11 yr) sedated with propofol during routine magnetic resonance imaging. The minimal anteroposterior and corresponding transverse diameters of the pharynx were determined at the levels of the soft palate, dorsum of the tongue, and tip of the epiglottis before and during the chin lift maneuver. Additionally, cross-sectional areas were calculated at these sites, including tracheal areas 2 cm below the glottic level. RESULTS: Minimal anteroposterior diameter of the pharynx increased significantly during chin lift at all three levels in all patients. The diameters of the soft palate, tongue, and epiglottis increased from 6.7+/-2.8 mm (SD) to 9.9+/-3.6 mm, from 9.6+/-3.6 mm to 16.5+/-3.1 mm, and from 4.6+/-2.5 mm to 13.1+/-2.8 mm, respectively. The corresponding transverse diameter of the pharynx also increased significantly at all three levels in all patients but without significant predominance. The diameters at the levels of the soft palate, tongue, and epiglottis increased from 15.8+/-5.1 mm to 22.8+/-4.5 mm, from 13.5+/-4.9 mm to 18.7+/-5.3 mm, and from 17.2+/-3.9 mm to 21.2+/-3.7 mm, respectively. Cross-sectional pharyngeal areas increased significantly at all levels (soft palate, from 0.88+/-0.58 cm2 to 1.79+/-0.82 cm2; tongue, from 1.15+/-0.45 cm2 to 2.99+/-1.30 cm2; epiglottis, from 1.17+/-0.70 cm2 to 3.04+/-0.99 cm2), including the subglottic level (from 0.44+/-0.15 cm2 to 0.50+/-0.14 cm2). CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that all children had a preserved upper airway at all measured sites during propofol sedation. Chin lift caused a widening of the entire pharyngeal airway that was most pronounced between the tip of the epiglottis and the posterior pharyngeal wall. In pediatric patients, chin lift may be used as a standard procedure during propofol sedation.  (+info)

GABAA receptor subunit composition and functional properties of Cl- channels with differential sensitivity to zolpidem in embryonic rat hippocampal cells. (24/1949)

Using flow cytometry in conjunction with a voltage-sensitive fluorescent indicator dye (oxonol), we have identified and separated embryonic hippocampal cells according to the sensitivity of their functionally expressed GABAA receptors to zolpidem. Immunocytochemical and RT-PCR analysis of sorted zolpidem-sensitive (ZS) and zolpidem-insensitive (ZI) subpopulations identified ZS cells as postmitotic, differentiating neurons expressing alpha2, alpha4, alpha5, beta1, beta2, beta3, gamma1, gamma2, and gamma3 GABAA receptor subunits, whereas the ZI cells were neuroepithelial cells or newly postmitotic neurons, expressing predominantly alpha4, alpha5, beta1, and gamma2 subunits. Fluctuation analyses of macroscopic Cl- currents evoked by GABA revealed three kinetic components of GABAA receptor/Cl- channel activity in both subpopulations. We focused our study on ZI cells, which exhibited a limited number of subunits and functional channels, to directly correlate subunit composition with channel properties. Biophysical analyses of GABA-activated Cl- currents in ZI cells revealed two types of receptor-coupled channel properties: one comprising short-lasting openings, high affinity for GABA, and low sensitivity to diazepam, and the other with long-lasting openings, low affinity for GABA, and high sensitivity to diazepam. Both types of channel activity were found in the same cell. Channel kinetics were well modeled by fitting dwell time distributions to biliganded activation and included two open and five closed states. We propose that short- and long-lasting openings correspond to GABAA receptor/Cl- channels containing alpha4beta1gamma2 and alpha5beta1gamma2 subunits, respectively.  (+info)