The effect of deep and awake extubation on emergence agitation after nasal surgery: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Post-anesthetic emergence agitation is common after general anesthesia and may cause adverse consequences, such as injury as well as respiratory and circulatory complications. Emergence agitation after general anesthesia occurs more frequently in nasal surgery than in other surgical procedures. This study aimed to assess the occurrence of emergence agitation in patients undergoing nasal surgery who were extubated under deep anesthesia or when fully awake. METHODS: A total of 202 patients (18-60 years, American Society of Anesthesiologists classification: I-II) undergoing nasal surgery under general anesthesia were randomized 1:1 into two groups: a deep extubation group (group D) and an awake extubation group (group A). The primary outcome was the incidence of emergence agitation. The secondary outcomes included number of emergence agitations, sedation score, vital signs, and incidence of adverse events. RESULTS: The incidence of emergence agitation was lower in group D than in group A (34.7% vs. 72.8%; p < 0.001). Compared to group A, patients in group D had lower Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale scores, higher Ramsay sedation scores, fewer agitation episodes, and lower mean arterial pressure when extubated and 30 min after surgery, whereas these indicators did not differ 90 min after surgery. There was no difference in the incidence of adverse events between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Extubation under deep anesthesia can significantly reduce emergence agitation after nasal surgery under general anesthesia without increasing the incidence of adverse events. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registered in Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04844333) on 14/04/2021.

Neurobehavioral effects of general anesthesia and cochlear implantation on hearing-impaired infants: A prospective observational cohort study.

INTRODUCTION: The potential adverse effects of prolonged exposure to anesthetics in pediatric patients with severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss remain unclear. This study aimed to examine whether early bilateral cochlear implantation involving long-duration anesthetic exposure caused greater developmental impairment than that with unilateral cochlear implantation. METHODS: This prospective observational study included normally developing infants with bilateral severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss aged 6 months to 2 years who were candidates for unilateral/bilateral cochlear implantation surgery. Baseline (T0), 6-month (T1), and 1-year (T2) Gesell Scale scores were measured. The outcomes included fine motor, adaptability, gross motor, language, and social skills scale 6 and 12 months postoperatively. RESULT: The 90 enrolled children with bilateral severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss (unilateral n = 43; bilateral n = 47) had a younger bilateral group (11.00 ± 3.66 vs. 15.63 ± 6.99 months, p < .001). Anesthesia duration was longer in the bilateral group (271.57 ± 36.09 vs. 148.81 ± 25.60 min, p < .001). Gross motor, fine motor, adaptability, and language scores improved in both groups, and no significant between-group differences occurred in the fine motor scale at T1 and T2. Language developmental quotients improved significantly in the bilateral group compared with the unilateral group at T1 (mean differences: 25.07 ± 4.37 vs. 10.88 ± 4.61, p < .001) and T2 (mean differences: 34.98 ± 5.94 vs. 15.28 ± 6.55, p < .001). Stepwise regression revealed that gross motor, adaptability, language, and social skill developmental quotients at T1 were positively correlated with those at T0. Gross motor, fine motor, and social skill developmental quotients at T2 were negatively correlated with age at operation. Language developmental quotients were positively correlated with T0 values (p < .001) and in the bilateral group (p < .001) at T1 and T2. CONCLUSIONS: When evaluating young children with bilateral severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss, despite longer exposures to general anesthesia, bilateral cochlear implantations were associated with more improvement in language scores and no differences in other skills compared with those with only unilateral implantation.