[The effect of propofol anesthesia with and without the use of opioid analgesia on cardiorespiratory stability in patients].

The possibility of use of propofol as an anesthetic induction agent was studied in 147 patients who were scheduled for trauma, abdominal, plastic and proctologic surgery. The patients were divided into 4 groups. Group I consisted of 39 patients who had anesthesia induced with propofol alone for outpatient operations. There was neither the decrease in blood pressure nor respiratory depression. Group II comprised 71 patients. These patients had anesthesia induced with a combination of propofol and alfentanil. They were breathing spontaneously. In this group, the decrease in blood pressure was seen in 20 patients (28%), and respiratory depression in 61 patients (85.9%). The Group III was composed of 30 patients who were assigned to the propofol and fentanyl for total intravenous induction combined with nitrous oxide-oxygen and pancuronium bromide for a maintenance of anesthesia. The patients were mechanically ventilated. The decrease in blood pressure occurred in 9 of these patients (30%). In Group IV in which a combination of propofol and talamonal were used because of a prolonged ventilation of patients by means of a respirator, 2 of 7 (28.6%) patients had the decrease in blood pressure. The study demonstrates that propofol as an anesthetic induction agent my be used for a great number of diagnoses and that it is very important to take into account the duration of surgical procedure and the stress of surgery, because if propofol is combined with narcotic analgetics the respiratory depression will appear in a high percentage.