Etomidate and midazolam for reduction of anterior shoulder dislocation: a randomized, controlled trial

We determine whether patients with acute, anterior shoulder dislocation undergoing emergency department procedural sedation and analgesia (PSA) with intravenous etomidate would experience a reduced time of impaired consciousness when compared with a group of patients receiving intravenous midazolam.

This study was a prospective, double-blinded, randomized, institutional review board-approved trial of ED patients with anterior shoulder dislocation. Patients were randomized to receive intravenous boluses of etomidate (0.1 mg/kg) or midazolam (0.033 mg/kg) during PSA. The primary outcome for comparison was PSA duration.

Forty-six patients with anterior shoulder dislocation were enrolled: 22 in the etomidate group and 24 in the midazolam group. Three patients sustained reduction without physician or sedative intervention. Two patients were excluded from protocol because of unavailable study drug or fracture dislocation. The median lowest modified postanesthetic recovery score observed during PSA was 5 (95% confidence interval [CI] 4 to 7) in the etomidate group and 6 (95% CI 6 to 7) in the midazolam group. The median time of PSA for patients receiving etomidate was 10 minutes (95% CI 8 to 15) compared with 23 minutes (95% CI 16 to 30) for patients receiving midazolam, with a difference between the group medians of 13 minutes (95% CI 5 to 22). Reduction success was achieved in 37 (90%) of 41 patients: 2 did not experience reduction with etomidate and 2 did not experience reduction with midazolam. There were 15 PSA complications reported.

Etomidate provides effective PSA for reduction of ED patients with anterior shoulder dislocation. When compared with midazolam, etomidate use confers a significantly shorter period of PSA.