• K Hara and K Maruyama.
• Department of Anaesthesiology, Iida Municipal Hospital, Nagano, Japan. masui@imh.jp
• Acta Anaesthesiol Scand. 2005 Apr 1;49(4):463-7.

BackgroundLaryngo-tracheal lidocaine spray before intubation is associated with an increased risk of postoperative throat problems. Our study investigated the effect of additives contained in lidocaine spray on postoperative sore throat, hoarseness and dysphagia.MethodsWe compared the incidence and severity of postoperative throat complications after laryngo-tracheal application of lidocaine spray (40 mg), lidocaine (40 mg) or normal saline as placebo during laryngoscopy with total intravenous anaesthesia in 122 ASA I-III patients aged 15-87 years in a double-blinded, placebo-controlled study. The incidence and severity of postoperative sore throat, hoarseness and dysphagia were evaluated on the day of and the day after surgery.ResultsSore throat and dysphagia were significantly more severe after lidocaine spray was used than after lidocaine or placebo was used. However, there was no significant difference in the incidence or severity of postoperative sore throat, hoarseness or dysphagia between the lidocaine group and the placebo group throughout the study.ConclusionThese results suggest that additives in lidocaine spray, not lidocaine itself, contribute to the increase in postoperative throat problems. Therefore, lidocaine spray should be avoided to prevent these unnecessary complications. Our findings also confirm that laryngo-tracheal lidocaine application does not prevent sore throat, hoarseness or dysphagia after total intravenous anaesthesia.

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