Background and objective: Foreign body aspiration is a life-threatening condition, with children under 3 years of age most at risk. This study was designed to compare the clinical characteristics of sevoflurane volatile induction/maintenance anaesthesia (VIMA) and propofol-remifentanil total intravenous anaesthesia (TIVA) for children undergoing rigid bronchoscopy under spontaneous breathing for tracheal/bronchial foreign body removal.
Methods: Sixty-four children undergoing rigid bronchoscopy were allocated randomly to receive sevoflurane (Group VIMA; n = 32) or propofol-remifentanil (Group TIVA, n = 32) between 2007 and 2009. Respiratory rate, heart rate and mean blood pressure were compared at the time points including baseline level (T 0); laryngoscopy (T lary); insertion of rigid bronchoscope (T bron); 5, 10 and 20 min during procedure (T 5 min, T 10 min, T 20 min); the end of procedure (Tend) and discharge (T dis). Induction time, emergence time, intubating condition scores and the incidence of adverse events were compared.
Results: Time for loss of consciousness (Group VIMA 95.6 ± 15.2 s vs. Group TIVA 146.2 ± 26.9 s, P < 0.05), time of Bispectral Index value decreased to 40 (Group VIMA 115.3 ± 16.5 s vs. Group TIVA 160.4 ± 25.8 s, P < 0.05) and emergence time (Group VIMA 10.5 ± 2.6 min vs. Group TIVA 16.9 ± 3.1 min, P < 0.05) in Group VIMA were significantly shorter than those in Group TIVA. Intubating condition scores between the two groups were comparable (8.1 ± 0.9 in Group VIMA vs. 8.1 ± 1.0 in Group TIVA). The incidence rates of breath holding (Group VIMA 6.25% vs. Group TIVA 31.25%, P < 0.05) and desaturation (Group VIMA 15.63% vs. Group TIVA 37.50%, P < 0.05) in Group VIMA were significantly lower than those in Group TIVA. Heart rate, mean blood pressure and respiratory rate were significantly higher in Group VIMA than in Group TIVA.
Conclusion: Compared with propofol-remifentanil TIVA, sevoflurane VIMA provides more stable haemodynamics and respiration, faster induction and recovery and higher incidence of excitement in paediatric patients undergoing tracheal/bronchial foreign body removal under spontaneous breathing.