Dexmedetomidine for infant pulmonary function testing

For the last thirty years, oral chloral hydrate has been used for sedation of infants for lung function testing. Recently, however, availability of chloral hydrate became severely limited in the United States after two manufacturers discontinued manufacturing in 2012. Due to these limitations and the recent and ongoing shortage of chloral hydrate, other medications have been proposed for lung function testing, including midazolam and propofol. Herein, we describe our limited experience using intravenous dexmedetomedine (DMED), a medication thus far described as having minimal effect on pulmonary function or respiratory drive.