• T Cafiero, R Burrelli, P Latina, and P Mastronardi.
• Department of General and Specialistic Surgical Sciences, A Cardarelli Hospital, Naples, Italy. tcafiero@tiscali.it
• Minerva Anestesiol. 2004 Jan 1;70(1-2):45-52.

AimTransition from the end of remifentanil infusion and postoperative analgesia must be planned carefully owing to remifentanil's (R) rapid offset. Intraoperative morphine has been used for the transition to postoperative analgesia following remifentanil-based anesthesia. Sufentanil (S) is a very potent opioid with high micro-receptor affinity, a much wider therapeutic index and a lower fractional receptor occupancy. These pharmacological and dynamics features make sufentanil an interesting alternative to morphine for immediate postoperative analgesia.MethodsExperimental Designperspective, randomized, single blinded and comparative study. Institution: neurosurgical operating theatre at University.Patients96 patients, aging from 25 to 67 years, ASA class I-III, undergoing neurosurgical operations, were studied.Interventions And Measurementsthe anesthetic management was: premedication: atropine 0.01 microg kg(-1) + remifentanil 0.20 microg kg(-1) min(-1); induction: propofol 2.0 microg kg(-1) + cisatracurium 0.15 microg kg(-1); maintenance: sevoflurane 0.8% + remifentanil (titrated infusion) cisatracurium. All patients received ketorolac 30 mg i.v. 1 hour before the end of surgery and ketorolac (60-90 mg) + tramadol (200-300 mg) by elastomeric pump; patients were divided into 2 groups: group T receiving tramadol 100 mg and group S receiving a bolus dose of sufentanil 0.10 microg kg(-1), 30 and 15 minutes before the end of surgery respectively. Recovery time, postoperative analgesia evaluated by VAS, cardiocirculatory parameters and side effects like nausea, vomiting, shivering, muscle rigidity, sedation and respiratory depression were recorded.ResultsVAS was significantly lower in Group S. Recovery time was shorter in Group T than in Group S (8.8 +/- 3.6 vs 11.6 +/- 4.6 min), no statistically significant differences between groups as regards nausea, vomiting and shivering. Short-lasting respiratory depression was detected in 3 cases in Group S.ConclusionAt the emergence much better control of the transition phase in patients treated with sufentanil: smooth recovery with better tolerability of the endotracheal tube; efficacious analgesia along with cardiocirculatory stability.

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