Conscious sedation for balloon mitral valvotomy: A comparison of fentanyl versus sufentanil

Context: Analgesia and sedation are required for the comfort of patient and the cardiologist during balloon mitral valvotomy. Aims: In this study, efficacy of analgesia, sedation, and patient satisfaction with sufentanil was compared with fentanyl. Settings and Design: Single-centered, prospective single-blind study of sixty patients. Materials and Methods: Patients between 15 and 45 years of rheumatic mitral stenosis with valve area of 0.8–1 cm 2 undergoing elective balloon mitral valvotomy, randomly divided to receive bolus injection fentanyl 1 mcg/kg (Group 1, n = 30) followed by infusion at 1 mcg/kg/h or bolus of injection sufentanil 0.1 mcg/kg (Group 2, n = 30) followed by continuous infusion at 0.1 mcg/h. Both the groups received injection midazolam bolus 0.02 mg/kg followed by infusion at 15 mcg/kg/h. Pain intensity (by visual analog score [VAS]), level of sedation (by Ramsay sedation scale), overall patient and operator's satisfaction, effect on cardiorespiratory parameters, and discharge score (by modified Aldrete score) were assessed. Statistical Analysis Used: Statistical analysis used Student's unpaired t -test and Chi-square test. P Results: Mean number of bolus doses in fentanyl group was 0.9 versus 0.13 in sufentanil group ( P P P P 2 values, and anxiety scores. Conclusion: Sufentanil was found to be better with respect to analgesia, patient satisfaction, and recovery however not cost-effective for continuous infusion technique.