Anaesthesia for short outpatient procedures. A comparison between thiopentone and propofol in combination with fentanyl or alfentanil

We studied supplementation of propofol or thiopentone anaesthesia with 0.5 or 1.0 mg alfentanil or 0.05 or 0.1 mg fentanyl for minor gynaecological outpatient procedures. Four hundred patients scheduled for elective termination of pregnancy were randomly allocated to one of eight groups. Induction agent doses, peroperative complications, complaints about pain and emesis during the postoperative period, and time to discharge were studied. Propofol compared to thiopentone was associated with a shorter time to discharge, 103 +/- 28 and 115 +/- 33 minutes respectively (P < 0.05) and anxiety during recovery was more frequent in the thiopentone group (P < 0.05). The need for postoperative reserve analgesics was less in the alfentanil group (P < 0.05). We found, however, no major differences between the supplementations tested regarding the total dose of induction agent, emesis or time to discharge. Supplementation with 1.0 mg of alfentanil to propofol was found to be the best combination tested for short outpatient procedures.