Paediatric anaesthesia & critical care
Association of Enteral Chloral Hydrate with Benzodiazepine Exposure and Delirium After Pediatric Cardiac Surgery: A Retrospective Before-and-After Cohort Study
Authors' conclusion
Addition of enteral chloral hydrate to a postoperative sedation protocol was associated with reduced benzodiazepine exposure and a lower observed frequency of delirium without statistically significant differences in sedation quality or short-term clinical outcomes. Prospective multicenter studies are warranted to confirm these findings.
Study context
- Population
- Children who underwent congenital heart surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass, required postoperative mechanical ventilation for more than 24 hours, and received sedation for at least 24 hours; pediatric cardiac intensive care unit of a tertiary referral centerchildren included
- Participants
- Eighty-six children
- Exposure
- Chloral hydrate group vs preprotocol group
- Outcome
- Cumulative midazolam exposure during the pediatric cardiac intensive care unit stay
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
P = 0.010
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Secondary outcomes
Peak midazolam infusion rates · significantly lower in the chloral hydrate group
P < 0.001
Delirium (observed frequency) · lower observed frequency in the chloral hydrate group
P = 0.015
Sedation quality, pain scores, withdrawal, duration of mechanical ventilation, length of stay in the pediatric cardiac intensive care unit or hospital, mortality
- No significant between-group differences
Original publication
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