Dexmedetomidine drip helps relieve pain following thyroidectomy

Perioperative administration of intravenous dexmedetomidine (DEX) infusion appears to result in lower pain after thyroid surgery, with its analgesic effect comparable to that of bilateral superficial cervical plexus block (SCPB), a study has found.

The study included 90 patients scheduled to receive thyroidectomy under general anaesthesia with endotracheal intubation. These patients were randomly assigned to one of three groups.

The first group was given intravenous DEX at an initial dose of 1 µg/kg over 10 minutes before performing induction and endotracheal intubation, and then a continuous infusion of DEX at a rate of 0.4 μg/kg/h until 30 minutes before the end of surgery (DEX group). The second group underwent ultrasound-guided bilateral SCPB, with 10 mL of 0.375% ropivacaine injected on each side (SCPB group). Finally, the third group received intravenous saline at the same rate and dose as in group D (control group).

Perioperative status of the patients was recorded. Outcomes examined were visual analogue scale scores, complications, and patient satisfaction

Compared with the control group, both DEX and SCPB groups had significantly lower pain at rest at 60 minutes after extubation and movement-evoked pain (MEP) within 24 hours. Likewise, patient satisfaction was much higher with DEX and SCPB than with the control.

There were no marked differences in pain at rest, MEP, and patient satisfaction between DEX and SCPB.