Alpha_2-adrenoceptor Agonists for Prevention of Emergence Agitation in Pediatric Patients under Sevoflurane Anesthesia: A Meta Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Objective To determine whether alpha2-adrenoceptor agonists can decrease emergence agitation(EA) in pediatric patients after sevoflurane anesthesia.Methods The Medline,Embase,Cochrane Library,CBM and CNKI were searched.All randomized controlled trials comparing clonidine or dexmedetomidine with other interventions in preventing emergence agitation after sevoflurane anesthesia were retrieved.Study selection and assessment,data collection and analyses were undertaken.Meta-analysis was done using the Cochrane Collaboration RevMan 5.0 software.Results Eleven articles reached our inclusion criteria and were included in the Meta-analysis.A total of 104 children treated with dexmedetomidine,268 children treated with clonidine,and 365 children treated with placebo were evaluated for the incidence of emergence agitation.The pooled odds ratio for the clonidine subgroup was 0.31,with a 95% confidence interval of 0.15-0.61(P=0.000 8).The pooled odds ratio for the dexmedetomidine subgroup was 0.16,with a 95% confidence interval of 0.08-0.31(P0.000 01).Conclusion Alph2-adrenoceptor agonists can significantly decrease the incidence of emergence agitation in pediatric patients after sevoflurane anesthesia.