An evaluation of oral and nasal midazolam for pediatric dental sedation.

Midazolam is a new short-acting benzodiazepine which is more potent than diazepam. Reports on its use in young pediatric dental patients is lacking in the literature. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sedative qualities of midazolam via the oral and nasal routes in 100 recalcitrant pediatric dental patients between 1.5 and 6 years of age. One half of the patients received oral midazolam at a dose of 0.5 mg/kg administered with 25 mg hydroxyzine pamoate suspension as a vehicle. The other half received nasal midazolam at a dose of 0.2 mg/kg. Nitrous oxide-oxygen inhalation and local anesthesia were used in all cases. The results indicated that a satisfactory level of sedation was achieved in approximately two thirds of the cases. Complications were rare, and not of clinical significance. There was no significant difference in the frequency of success or complications reported between the oral and nasal routes. The results of the present study support the need for future investigations to determine optimal pediatric dosages and regimens for each route.