Comparison of oral midazolam with intranasal dexmedetomidine premedication for children undergoing CT imaging: a randomized, double-blind, and controlled study.

BACKGROUND: Children undergoing computerized tomography (CT) frequently require sedation to allay their anxiety, and prevent motion artifacts and stress of intravenous (IV) cannulation.

AIMS: The aim of this trial was to compare the effectiveness of oral midazolam and intranasal dexmedetomidine as sole premedicants in children for carrying out both IV cannulation as well as CT scanning, without the need for additional IV sedatives.

METHODS: Fifty-nine children, aged 1-6 years, scheduled to undergo CT imaging under sedation were randomized to receive either 0.5 mg·kg-1 oral midazolam (group M) or 2.5 mcg·kg-1 intranasal dexmedetomidine (group D). After 20-30 min, intravenous cannulation was performed and response to its placement was graded using the Groningen Distress Rating Scale (GDRS). After cannulation, children were transferred on the CT table, and assessed using the Ramsay sedation score (RSS). CT imaging was performed without any further sedative if the RSS was ≥4. If there was movement or decrease in sedation depth (RSS ≤ 3), ketamine 1 mg·kg-1 IV was given as an initial dose, followed by subsequent doses of 0.5 mg·kg-1 IV if required.

RESULTS: A Significantly higher proportion of children in group D (67%) achieved RSS ≥ 4 as compared to group M (24%) (P-0.002). The risk ratio (95% CI) was 2.76 (1.38-5.52). Significantly lower GDRS scores were noted in group D (1(1-2)) as compared to group M (2(1-2)) at the time of venipuncture (P = 0.04).

CONCLUSION: In the doses and time intervals used in our study, intranasal dexmedetomidine (2.5 μg·kg-1 ) was found to be superior to oral midazolam (0.5 mg·kg-1 ) for producing satisfactory sedation for CT imaging.