Effect of Continuous Systemic Administration of Esmolol on Intraocular Pressure During Surgery in a Sustained Steep...

To investigate the effects of continuous systemic administration of esmolol on intraocular pressure (IOP) during laparoscopic and robotic surgeries for recto-sigmoid cancer in a steep Trendelenburg position.

A total of 50 patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery in a steep Trendelenburg position were included. Patients in the esmolol (E) group received a 0.25 mg/kg IV loading dose of esmolol before anesthesia, followed by an infusion of 15 μg/kg/min throughout the operation. Patients in the saline (S) group were infused with the same volume of normal saline. IOP and ocular perfusion pressure were measured 16 times: before anesthetic induction (T1), before administration of the study drug (T2), after administration of anesthetic induction agents (T3), after tracheal intubation (T4), 1, 3, 5, and 10 minutes after tracheal intubation (T5-T8), immediately after intraperitoneal CO2 insufflation (T9), immediately after the steep Trendelenburg position (T10), 1, 2, and 4 hours after the steep Trendelenburg position (T11-T13), just before the supine position (T14), and 10 and 30 minutes after the supine position (T15, T16).

The IOP increased markedly after adopting the steep Trendelenburg position, reaching 28.8±4.4 mm Hg in group S. The IOP at T13 in group S was ∼5.7 mm Hg higher than in group E. The IOP at T13 was ∼10.6 mm Hg higher than in T1 in group S, but only ∼4.4 mm Hg higher than in group E.

Continuous systemic administration of esmolol can alleviate the increase in IOP during a sustained steep Trendelenburg position without adverse cardiovascular effects.