• Daniel Sabo, Jonathan Jahr, Janet Pavlin, Beverly Philip, Noriko Shimode, Everton Rowe, Tiffany Woo, and Roy Soto.
• Department of Anesthesiology, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Shadyside Campus, 5230 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15232, USA, SaboDP@anes.upmc.edu.
• Can J Anaesth. 2014 May 1;61(5):423-32.

BackgroundSuccinylcholine provides rapid onset of neuromuscular blockade and short duration of action, but its administration may be associated with hyperkalemia. Rocuronium is not known to increase potassium concentration, has fast onset of activity, and can be rapidly reversed by sugammadex. This study evaluated changes in plasma potassium concentrations in patients randomized either to rocuronium followed by sugammadex reversal or to succinylcholine in ambulatory surgery.MethodsIn this multicentre randomized active-controlled study, adult patients undergoing short surgical procedures in an outpatient setting received either rocuronium 0.6 mg·kg(-1) for intubation with sugammadex 4.0 mg·kg(-1) for reversal (n = 70) or succinylcholine 1.0 mg·kg(-1) with spontaneous recovery (n = 80). Blood potassium concentrations were assessed at baseline (before study drug administration) and at intervals up to 15 min after rocuronium, sugammadex, and succinylcholine.ResultsAt the primary endpoint, five minutes post-administration, the changes in potassium concentrations from baseline were significantly smaller in patients treated with rocuronium than in those given succinylcholine [mean (SD): -0.06 (0.32) vs 0.30 (0.34) mmol·L(-1), respectively; P < 0.0001]. At baseline, potassium concentrations were similar in both groups, but they were greater at two, five, ten, and 15 min after succinylcholine than after rocuronium (P < 0.0001) for all time points. After sugammadex administration, there were no significant changes in mean potassium concentration from the pre-rocuronium baseline. No adverse effects related to hyperkalemia were observed.ConclusionSuccinylcholine was associated with a modest increase in potassium concentration; these changes were not seen after rocuronium or sugammadex (Clinical Trial Registration NumberNCT00751179).

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