Ketamine-dexmedetomidine combination for sedation in pediatric major surgery in a low-income country.

Anorectal malformations are one of the most frequent congenital malformations treated by pediatric surgeons. In low-income countries, the surgical and anesthetic management of children in need of these procedures can be challenging. Limited oxygen supply, lack of equipment, especially pediatric, and intensive care units make the use of regional anesthesia appealing. We present a series of four cases of anorectal malformations corrections in Guinea Bissau, in children up to 13 months of age, under regional anesthesia and sedation with ketodex, a mixture of ketamine and dexmedetomidine (in a proportion of 1 mg to 1 μg). No child developed respiratory depression requiring airway intervention or supplemental oxygen, or had hemodynamic instability.