A survey of pentobarbital sedation for children undergoing abdominal CT scans after oral contrast medium.

Radiologists have traditionally been responsible for the sedation of children undergoing radiological investigations. Anaesthetists are becoming increasingly involved in providing sedation and/or anaesthesia in this environment. The sedation of a child for a CT scan who has recently been given oral contrast medium (OCM) may pose anaesthetists a number of dilemmas. This is a retrospective survey of 149 intravenous pentobarbital sedations administered by radiologists to children (age range three months to seven years three months, weight range 5 kg to 28.9 kg) undergoing upper abdominal CT after recent ingestion of OCM. The average patient received pentobarbital 4.6 mg.kg-1. 141 patients (94.6%) received pentobarbital as the only sedative agent, whereas eight patients (5.4%) required supplementary sedation (midazolam +/- fentanyl). There were no failed sedations. 36 complications occurred during 22 sedations (14.7% of total), with the most common being desaturation, vomiting, airway secretions, airway obstruction, coughing and bronchospasm.