• Minjuan Zhang, Zhuoma Cairen, Xiaoyu Liu, Jiao Deng, Xiaoxiao Mu, Yun Wang, and Zhihong Lu.
• Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Xijing Hospital, Airforce Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2024 Jan 26; 103 (4): e35730e35730.

BackgroundPropofol is a common regimen for general anesthesia maintenance. But propofol can dose-dependently generate cardiopulmonary depression. Thus, any strategy to reduce propofol dosage during laparoscopic surgery may have underlying beneficial effect for patient prognosis. Previous studies indicated both analgesic and sedative effect of acupoint stimulation. However, its main sedative effect on patients under general anesthesia remains unclear.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to investigate the sedative effect of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) on patients scheduled for laparoscopic surgery under general anesthesia.Design, Setting, Participants And InterventionsIn this randomized clinical trial, patients scheduled for laparoscopic surgery under general anesthesia in Xijing hospital were randomly assigned to 3 groups, receiving electrical stimulation at the Shenmen (HT7)/Ximen (PC4) (TEAS group), stimulation at the shoulder (non-acupoint group) or no stimulation (control group), respectively.Main Outcome MeasuresOne hundred sixty-two patients completed the study. The primary outcome was the consumption of propofol, and secondary outcomes included features of recovery after surgery, major complications after surgery and by 1 year after surgery.ResultsIn patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery, the doses of propofol decreased significantly in the TEAS group compared (0.10 ± 0.02 mg·kg-1·min-1) with the other 2 groups (both 0.12 ± 0.02 mg·kg-1·min-1, P < .001). The mean differences (95% confidence interval) for non-acupoint versus TEAS and control versus TEAS were 0.021 (0.012, 0.030) and 0.024 (0.013, 0.034), respectively. Time to awake and to extubation were not significantly different among the groups. The incidences of major complications after surgery and by 1 year after surgery were not significantly different among the groups.ConclusionTEAS could induce additional sedative effect in patients during laparoscopic surgery and reduce propofol consumption.Copyright © 2024 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.

16 keywords...

hide…