EFFICACY OF ORAL CLONIDINE AS A PREMEDICANT IN PAEDIATRIC ADENOTONSILLECTOMY IN COMPARISON WITH ORAL DIAZEPAM

This prospective clinical study was conducted at Government General Hospital, Chennai in patients aged 7-12 yrs undergoing adenotonsillectomy. After approval of hospital ethical committee for the study, informed consent was obtained from the parents. A double blinded randomized,comparative parallel group design was employed. Eighty ASA I patients of both sexes aged 7-12 years undergoing adenotonsillectomy surgeries were studied in this clinical trial. These patients were randomly allocated to two groups of 40 each - Group C received T. Clonidine 4 mu g/kg while Group D received T. Diazepam 0.15mg / kg as premedication 90 minutes prior to surgery with sips of water. Preoperative sedation and anxiety, hemodynamic changes during laryngoscopy, intubation and during the procedure were assessed. Post operative pain scores were recorded every half-an-hour for the first 4 hours after extubation. The data obtained were subjected to statistical analysis. Z test was applied. P value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The demographic profile was comparable in both the groups. Preoperative sedation and anxiety relief was statistically significant in Group C (P<0.05), Stable hemodynamic were observed in Group C throughout the procedure. None of the patients in Group C required intervention for bradycardia or hypotension. Significant post operative analgesia was noted in Group C (97.5%) as compared to Group D (10%) even after 4 hours. Children in neither group had respiratory complications post operatively. Oral clonidine in the dose of 4 mu g/kg is an effective analgesic and sedative for children undergoing adenotonsillectomy in age group of 7-12 years.