Etomidate-propofol combination in painless gastrointestinal endoscopy for elderly patients: A comparative study.

BACKGROUND

Elderly patients often display age-related physiological decline, which increases their susceptibility to complications during medical procedures. Therefore, it is clinically imperative to refine anesthetic protocols for painless gastroscopy in this vulnerable population.

AIM

To explore the effects of the etomidate-propofol combination on anesthesia quality, compliance, and adverse reactions in elderly patients undergoing painless gastrointestinal endoscopy.

METHODS

A total of 103 elderly patients scheduled for painless gastrointestinal endoscopy at the Hospital of Wuhan Economic and Technological Development Zone (Hannan District) between October 2022 and October 2024 were enrolled. The participants were divided into a control group ( = 50) receiving propofol anesthesia and an observation group ( = 53) that received a combination of etomidate and propofol anesthesia. The anesthesia quality (including induction time, recovery time, and orientation recovery time), compliance, hemodynamic parameters (heart rate, oxygen saturation, systolic/diastolic blood pressure), adverse reactions (muscle tremors, injection pain, respiratory depression, hypotension, and nausea/vomiting), and analgesic and sedative effects [evaluated using the visual analog scale (VAS) and Ramsay score] were comparatively analyzed.

RESULTS

The observation group had significantly shorter anesthesia induction, recovery, and orientation recovery times than the control group. Moreover, the observation group showed higher compliance; greater hemodynamic stability at preanesthesia (T0), during anesthesia (T1), and postrecovery (T2) time points; and a significantly lower incidence of adverse reactions. The VAS and Ramsay scores at 5, 30, and 60 minutes after anesthesia recovery were also significantly lower in the observation group than in the control group.

CONCLUSION

The etomidate-propofol combination for painless gastrointestinal endoscopy in elderly patients may provide superior anesthesia quality and improved compliance and safety, making it a promising approach for clinical application.