Intravenous Sedation and Analgesia in a Pediatric Emergency Department: A Retrospective Descriptive Study.
Cureus August 1, 2024 Madalena Carvalho, Ana Teresa Guerra, Marta Moniz et al.
Intravenous sedation with ketamine and midazolam is a safe method for painful procedures in children, with a low rate of adverse events. In a pediatric emergency department in Portugal, 615 children (median age 6 years) received sedation, mostly for wound suturing (50.9%) or fracture reduction (36.3%). Ketamine was used in 99.2% of cases and midazolam in 95.8%, with 93.8% receiving both. Adverse events occurred in 8.1% of patients, most commonly transient oxygen desaturation (2%), vomiting (1.5%), apnea or bradypnea (1%), and hallucinations (0.8%). Respiratory complications resolved without invasive interventions. The occurrence of adverse events was not dose-dependent.