Effect of dexmedetomidine for sedation and cognitive function in patients with preoperative anxiety undergoing carotid artery stenting

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to examine the effect of dexmedetomidine for intraoperative sedation and postoperative cognitive function in patients with preoperative anxiety undergoing carotid artery stenting. METHODS: Eighty patients were randomly divided into two groups: the dexmedetomidine group and the control group. Cognitive function was assessed using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Anxiety was evaluated using the Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale. Routine monitoring indices were recorded during surgery, and cognitive function indices were recorded before drug infusion (T(0)), 10 minutes after drug infusion (T(1)), at the end of surgery (T(2)), and 6 hours after surgery (T(3)). RESULTS: The anxiety scores were not significantly different between the two groups at T0, but they became significantly different at T(1–3). The MMSE scores in both groups increased at 1 and 7 days postoperatively; although the increase in the dexmedetomidine group was sharper, there was no significant difference. In both groups, the MMSE scores at 1 and 7 days after surgery were not significantly different from those at 1 day before surgery. CONCLUSION: Dexmedetomidine can improve patients’ anxiety and achieve a sufficient sedation effect without causing postoperative cognitive dysfunction.