• Marco Fiore, Giacomo Torretta, Maria Beatrice Passavanti, Pasquale Sansone, Maria Caterina Pace, Aniello Alfieri, Caterina Aurilio, Vittorio Simeon, Paolo Chiodini, and Vincenzo Pota.
• Department of Women, Child and General and Specialized Surgery, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy.
• JBI Database System Rev Implement Rep. 2019 Oct 1; 17 (10): 2159-2164.

ObjectiveThe purpose of this review is to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of dexmedetomidine as adjunctive therapy to the standard of care (benzodiazepines) compared to either the standard of care or other adjunctive treatment approaches (e.g. benzodiazepines plus propofol) for the treatment of alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS).IntroductionBenzodiazepines have been the cornerstone of AWS therapy, but in some patients, AWS is refractory to high doses. Moreover, benzodiazepine use is burdened by excessive sedation, confusion and respiratory depression. Options for management of refractory AWS include the addition of phenobarbital, propofol and, more recently, dexmedetomidine to benzodiazepines therapy. The possible advantage of dexmedetomidine compared to benzodiazepines is that it does not cause respiratory depression, thus reducing the risk of intubation and hospitalization in the intensive care unit.Inclusion CriteriaThis review will consider studies including patients who are 18 years or older and are diagnosed with AWS. The exclusion criteria are a history of psychoactive substances or withdrawal states and/or severe neurologic disorder (e.g. traumatic brain injury, acute stroke, severe dementia, seizure disorder).MethodsThis review will include only studies published in English, with no restrictions on the year of publication. Both randomized controlled trials and observational studies (including cohort and case-control studies) assessing the drug effectiveness and safety will be included. The databases utilized will include: PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. In addition, the trial registers to be searched will include: World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP), U.S. National Library of Medicine Drug Information Portal and ClinicalTrials.gov.Systematic Review Registration NumberPROSPERO CRD42018084370.

19 keywords...

hide…