Comparison of old and new types of premedications

By random allocation 41 patients received 1 mg flunitrazepam orally the night before operation and 1 mg on the morning of operation (group 1), and another 41 received 100 mg pentobarbital orally the night before operation, followed by intramuscular scopolamine (0.006 mg/kg) + morphine (0.02 mg/kg) on the morning of operation (group 2). All patients received 0.5 mg atropine intravenously just before the induction of anesthesia. The patients in group 2 were better sedated and had less salivary secretion than those in group 1, but otherwise both were comparable. In group 2 the induction requirements of thiopentone were significantly decreased in comparison with group 1, again indicating a more potent sedative effect. Because even in the total scoring of the results there was no significant difference between the two groups, the easy oral route of administration of flunitrazepam offers a clinically relevant alternative to the conventional premedication. In some of these E.N.T. patients who received flunitrazepam, intravenous atropine given just before the induction of anesthesia was unable to prevent salivary secretion. Oral benzodiazepine derivatives (flunitrazepam) appear to be useful before surgery as the old type of premedication (oral pentobarbital + i.m. scopolamine and morphine).