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The immunomodulatory mechanism of dexmedetomidine

Koichi Yuki1

  • 1Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Cardiac Anesthesia Division, Boston Children's Hospital, USA; Department of Anaesthesia, Harvard Medical School, USA; Department of Immunology, Harvard Medical School, USA.

International Immunopharmacology
|May 2, 2021
PubMed

Dexmedetomidine has been increasingly introduced into the perioperative care of surgical patients. Because a subset of anesthetics/sedatives are immunomodulatory, it is critical to understand the role of dexmedetomidine in our host immune functions. Here we reviewed the role of dexmedetomidine in different immune cells. We also reviewed published clinical articles that described the role of dexmedetomidine in organ injury, cancer surgery, and infection. In animal studies, dexmedetomidine attenuated organ injury. In clinical studies, dexmedetomidine was associated with an improvement in outcomes in cardiac surgery and transplant surgery. However, there is a paucity in research examining how dexmedetomidine is associated with these outcomes. Further studies are needed to understand its clinical application from immunological standpoints.

Keywords:
DexmedetomidineLeukocyteOutcome

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