Is There Still a Role for Succinylcholine in Contemporary Clinical Practice?

Succinylcholine is a depolarizing muscle relaxant that has been used for rapid sequence induction and for procedures requiring only a brief duration of muscle relaxation since the late 1950s. The drug, however, has serious side effects and a significant number of contraindications. With the recent introduction of sugammadex in the United States, a drug that can rapidly reverse even large amounts of rocuronium, succinylcholine should no longer be used for endotracheal intubation and its use should be limited to treating acute laryngospasm during episodes of airway obstruction. Given the numerous risks with this drug, and the excellent ablation of airway reflexes with dexmedetomidine, propofol, lidocaine and the larger amounts of rocuronium that can now be administered even for an anesthesia of short duration. The use of succinylcholine for endotracheal intubation should disappear from clinical practice.