Recovery after anaesthesia with alfentanil or halothane

Seventy-three patients were studied during and after anaesthesia with either alfentanil or halothane for surgical procedures of short duration. The procedures were minor gynaecological or minor urological procedures, involving males and females between the ages of 21 and 86 years. After pre-medication with lorazepam, anaesthesia was induced with methohexitone and continued with nitrous oxide and oxygen, supplemented with halothane (34 patients) or alfentanil (39 patients). Anaesthesia was generally smooth and uncomplicated except that at induction 22 of the patients receiving alfentanil became apnoeic for longer than 30 seconds. Spontaneous respiration resumed without the need for naloxone in any patients. After surgery, recovery of consciousness was significantly more rapid after alfentanil than after halothane (5.6 minutes versus 10.1 minutes). This study demonstrates that alfentanil can be a suitable alternative to conventional general anaesthesia for short cases and may have a useful place when rapid recovery and turnover of cases is important.