Effect of bispectral index versus end-tidal anesthetic gas concentration-guided protocol on time to tracheal extubation for halothane-based general anesthesia

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Early extubation is a desirable goal after general anesthesia. Very few studies have compared the effect of bispectral index (BIS) monitoring versus standard end-tidal anesthetic gas (ETAG) concentration monitoring on tracheal extubation time for halothane-based anesthesia. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of BIS versus ETAG-guided anesthesia on time to tracheal extubation for halothane-based anesthesia in general surgical setting. METHODS: This was a randomized, controlled double-blind study. Sixty patients with the American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status Class 1 or 2, receiving halothane-based general anesthesia were randomized to BIS-guided (n = 30) and ETAG-guided anesthesia (n = 30). Time to tracheal extubation was measured. In BIS group, BIS value was kept between 40 and 60 while in ETAG group; ETAG value was kept between 0.7 and 1.3 minimum alveolar concentration. The two groups were compared using Student's t-test, and P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Data were processed and analyzed using SPSS version 17 software. RESULTS: Mean time to tracheal extubation was significantly longer in BIS group (9.63 ± 3.02 min) as compared to ETAG group (5.29 ± 1.51 min), mean difference 4.34 min with 95% confidence interval (3.106, 5.982) (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: In our study, the extubation time was significantly longer in BIS-guided anesthesia as compared to ETAG-guided anesthesia. ETAG monitoring promotes earlier extubation of patients as compared to BIS monitoring during halothane anesthesia.