Newer Sedative May Reduce Delirium in ICU Patients

Related Healthscout Videos Save Big on Health Care Is The I-Port Covered By Insurance Hospitals Going High-Tech Video Interview: Dr. Atul Gawande on the Role of Patients in Improving Medical Care More... Related News Articles • Dual Treatment Cuts Dangerous Hospital Infection • Genetics Used to Track Transmission of MRSA Bacteria • New Disinfectant Could Help Hospitals Fight Germs • Senate Upset Foils Democrats' Health Reform Agenda More...

Page:  << Prev | 1 | 2

Moreover, patients receiving dexmedetomidine spent less time on ventilators than patients receiving midazolam. Patients receiving midazolam remained on ventilators almost two days longer than those receiving dexmedetomidine (5.6 days vs. 3.7 days), Riker's group reports.

Patients receiving dexmedetomidine were more likely to experience a slow heartbeat, but were less likely to experience a rapid heartbeat or high blood pressure than those receiving midazolam, the researchers noted.

The reasons for these results are varied and not well-understood, Riker said. The drugs target different parts of the brain, which may account for some of the differences, he added.

Text Continues Below

---

Riker thinks this study provides evidence that will get more physicians to use dexmedetomidine. "As we get more studies, I think it may potentially become a new standard of care," he noted.

However, Dr. John P. Kress, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Chicago and co-author of an accompanying journal editorial, thinks dexmedetomidine may be appropriate for some patients, but it won't replace other drugs.

"Dexmedetomidine is one of many drugs that are out there as options," Kress said. "Do I think it should be used for everybody? No. Do I think it has the potential for more than a rare occasional patient? I think this study shows that that's the case."

Kress would also like to see a study of dexmedetomidine that could determine whether the drug improves long-term outcomes.

More information

For more information on critical care, visit the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

Page:  << Prev | 1 | 2