A clinical trial of enflurane in children.

Enflurane was administered as the primary anaesthetic agent to 200 children between the ages of 7 months and 14 years who were undergoing elective surgery. Induction and recovery were rapid and generally uneventful. Changes observed in the cardiovascular system included an initial fall in blood pressure, which tended subsequently to correct itself, and supraventricular arrhythmias mainly of nodal rhythm type. End expiratory CO2-concentration as measured by a capnograph tended to be elevated during spontaneous ventilation . Changes in liver function as measured by enzymatic activity were seen in some cases but were without statistical significance. Satisfactory muscle relaxation was generally obtained without the use of muscle relaxants. However, in two cases, poor relaxation occurred even at a concentration of 4.5% enflurane, and in these cases, EEG changes of polyspike suppression type were observed. This phenomenon is discussed in a subsequent article. As a result of their findings, the authors conclude that in paediatric anaesthesia enflurane is best suited for use in anaesthetics of relatively short duration with spontaneous respiration.