[Postoperative agitation. A new cause]

Thirty-three patients, operated on between 1981 and 1986, and presenting post-operative confusion and restlessness are analyzed. Two groups are identified: group 1 are patients who regularly received BZD before their present hospitalization; in group 2 patients were given high-dose BZD in the early postoperative period. Symptoms were anxiousness in 15 patients, restlessness in 14, myoclonia in 14, delirium in 3, coma and seizures in 1. BZD withdrawal syndrome was considered after the other causes of post-operative agitation were eliminated and the diagnosis was confirmed by the administration of BZD that relieved the symptoms and by the plasmatic concentration of BZD. This syndrome appears 1 to 5 days after BZD withdrawal and severity of symptoms seems to be directly proportional to the doses and duration of BZD therapy. Propranolol was proposed to reduce the intensity of the symptoms. Nevertheless, progressive withdrawal of BZD remains the best way for managing such patients.