Abstract No.: ABS3251: A comparative study of oral clonidine and oral midazolam as premedication in paediatric surgery.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Premedication plays animportant role in allowing smooth parent-child separation. Oral midazolam 1hour before surgery,as a premedication in children-is considered safeandeffective at separation and induction. Oral clonidine 1hour before surgery-providessedation, anxiolysis, analgesia. The aim of the study was to access the parent-separation anxiety score and mask acceptance score. METHODS: A total of 60 children, aged 2 to 10 years and American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status classification of I–II, were included after random allocation into two groups. Group C- oral clonidine 3 µg/kg, Group M- oral midazolam (0.5 mg/kg) were given as premedication 1 hour before surgery. Patients were assessed for parent separation anxiety score (PSAS) and mask acceptance score. Patients were monitored for pulse, blood pressure, saturation at regular intervals. Statistical analysis was done using Pearson chi square test. RESULTS: There was a significant association between the groups and PSAS (P=0.001). Lower PSAS was seen in clonidine as compared to midazolam. Significant association was found between the groups and Mask acceptance scale (MAS) (P=0.001). Excellent maskacceptance was seen in clonidine as compared to midazolam group. CONCLUSION: From our observations and data analysis. we concluded that clonidine is better than midazolam when used as premedication and provides better parent separation score and mask acceptance in paediatric patients undergoing surgery.