Patients satisfied with oral sedation for cataract surgery

(HealthDay)—Using oral sedation during cataract surgery does not negatively impact patient satisfaction compared with using an intravenous (IV) sedative, according to a study published online April 16 in Ophthalmology.

Crandall E. Peeler, M.D., from Boston Medical Center, and colleagues randomly assigned 85 patients (mean age, 65.8 years) scheduled for cataract surgery to receive either oral triazolam with IV placebo or IV midazolam with oral placebo preoperatively.

The researchers found that the mean patient satisfaction score was 5.34 (range, 3.75 to 6) in the oral sedation group and 5.4 (range, 4 to 6) in the IV group. Given the a priori noninferiority margin of 0.5, the actual difference of 0.06 between the groups demonstrated noninferiority of oral sedation (P = 0.0004). Surgeons and anesthesia providers reported similar satisfaction in the two groups. In the oral group, intraoperative complications occurred in 16.7 percent of patients compared with 9.3 percent in the IV group (P = 0.31). Supplemental IV sedation was used in eight patients in the oral group and three in the IV group (P = 0.097).

"The use of oral sedation in cataract surgery has been suggested as a cost- and space-saving measure, potentially allowing the transition of some cases from an operating to procedure room or office-based setting," the authors write.

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