Comparison of propofol/fentanyl and ketamine anesthesia in children during extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy

Objectives: Extracorporeal Shockwave Lithotripsy (ESWL) is an effective and safe way for treatment of upper urinary system stones. For pediatric patients, throughout ESWL, sufficient sedation and analgesia is needed to cope with the procedural pain. In this study, our goal was to compare 2 methods of intravenous anesthesia, applied to pediatric patients during ESWL. Methods: Forty patients, between 3 months and 15 years of age who were admitted to the Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University, Turkey between September 2003 to September 2004 with upper urinary system calculi were randomized into 2 groups. All patients received intranasal midazolam 0.3 mg/kg premedication. Group K received intravenous (iv) ketamine 2 mg/kg; Group PF received a bolus of iv propofol 3 mg/kg and iv fentanyl 1 mu g/kg along with a propofol infusion of 1 mg/kg/hr throughout the procedure. Procedural, recovery and discharge times, incidences of intra and post-procedural complications were compared. Results: Demographics, procedural and discharge times were similar in 2 groups. While recovery times and post-procedural complication incidence was higher for the Group K, intraprocedural complication incidence was higher for the Group PF. Conclusion: Although both protocols do not differ much according to ease of application and efficacy in providing sufficient analgesia for ESWL, they have their corresponding side effects and they can only be practiced safely by experienced anesthesiologists in a monitorized and well equipped setting.