[Comparison of sedation with dexmedetomidine and haloperidol in patients with delirium after femoral neck fractures].

UNLABELLED: Delirium seriously complicates the recovery period after surgery, injury and increases mortality in elderly patients with femoral fractures.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: We examined 80 geriatric patients admitted to the Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics in Astana in the period from September 2012 to June 2014. We evaluated the efficacy of dexmedetomidine and haloperidol sedation according to RASS, communication ability and level of tolerance of procedures. The effect of dexmedetomidine was better and was expressed 30.3% decreasing of the duration of delirium in comparison with haloperidol (p < 0.05). Overall assessment of the ability of patients to the interaction, cooperation and tolerance of procedures evaluated by nurses, was higher in the dexmedetomidine group compared with haloperidol, as well as evaluating the effectiveness of individual communication and cooperation (8.3 ± 2.3 points vs 4.5 ± 1.9 points, p < 0.05). Despite the development of bradycardia in a small number of patients, as well as headaches and nausea after stopping the infusion, dexmedetomidine provided a more controlled and safe sedation compared with haloperidol.