A preliminary study of different methods of anesthesia for painless bronchoscopy

Objective This study aimed to explore a feasible method of anesthesia for painless bronchoscopy. Methods A total of 120 patients receiving flexible bronchoscopy in Beijing Tiantan Hospital during the period from February, 8, 2018 to May, 4, 2018, were randomly divided into 3 groups, including group A (using lidocaine for local anesthesia), group B (using lidocaine + midazolam + fentanyl), and group C (using lidocaine + propofol + sufentanil). There were 41 patients in group A, 38 in group B and 41 in group C. The changes in systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate and pulse oxygen saturation(SpO2) in each group were recorded in different points of time. The safety of different methods of anesthesia was observed by recording vital signs and adverse events. Moreover, the visual analogue scale (VAS) was used to observe the patient′s tolerance and satisfaction of the operation. Results The intraoperative systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure in group C were significantly lower than those in group A and B (P 0.05), while patients in group C were prone to decrease in SpO2. Eighteen patients in group C had hypoxemia during operation. But after treated with improving ventilation, the SpO2 of those patients could be restored to normal. Compared with those in group C, patients in group A and group B showed significant discomfort, cough, and more pharyngeal pain (P 0.05). Most patients in group C had no uncomfortable sensation during the operation (P<0.05), and the willingness to re-examination was significantly higher than that in group A and group B (P<0.05). Conclusion Propofol combined with sufentanil could achieve better painless effect, improve patient comfort and tolerance, and reduce intraoperative memory, but was prone to causing hypoxemia and hypotension. The decline of intraoperative SpO2 could be corrected by establishing artificial airway, while the decrease of blood pressure could be corrected by applying vasoactive drugs, which were relatively safe. Key words: Bronchoscopy; Propofol; Sufentanil; Midazolam; Fentanyl; Lidocaine