• H Volkan Acar, Ahmet Yilmaz, Gamze Demir, Solmaz Günal Eruyar, and Bayazit Dikmen.
• Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Ankara Training and Research Hospital of Ministry of Health, Ankara, Turkey. hvacar@yahoo.com
• Paediatr Anaesth. 2012 Nov 1; 22 (11): 1105-9.

AimTo detect the effect of capsicum plasters on bilateral HT 7 acupoints for decreasing Emergence agitation (EA) in pediatric patients undergoing tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy.BackgroundEmergence agitation with its incidence of 10% to 80% may have deleterious effects in postoperative period. Children may harm themselves and/or care providers who require extra nursing care and additional sedatives and/or analgesics that may cause a delay in discharge from hospital. The studies dealt with the potential benefits of the use of adjuvant drugs have yielded controversial results. Some may have side effects as well as the absence of a positive effect on EA.Methods/MaterialsFifty patients undergoing elective adenoidectomy and/or tonsillectomy who aged between 2 and 10 were included to the study. Patients were divided into two groups, and capsicum plasters (acupuncture) or inactive plasters (sham) were applied on bilateral HT 7 points preoperatively. Pain, emergence agitation, and side effects were evaluated for 15 min postoperatively.ResultsIncidence of EA (PAED scale) (28.0% vs 60.0) and postoperative side effects was lower in acupuncture group than in sham group while there was no significant difference in the severity of EA between groups. Duration of recovery was shorter in acupuncture group. Pain scores (CHEOPS scale) were comparable between groups. EA patients were noted to have greater age and more retching than non-EA patients. Postoperative side effects such as retching, laryngospasm, and vomiting were seen more frequently in the patients with EA.ConclusionsApplication of capsicum plasters on acupoints offers a valuable choice in the prevention of EA in children.© 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

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