Author(s)

Mehmet I. Buget¹, Zerrin Sungur¹, Berker Ozkan², Mesut Yornuk¹, Fatma Demircan¹, Mert Senturk¹

¹Department of Anaesthesiology, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey.
²Department of Thoracic Surgery, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey.

Background: The effect of intravenously administered dexmedetomidine on oxygenation during one-lung ventilation has not been studied. The hypothesis of this prospective, randomized study was that dexmedetomidine would be associated with an improvement in oxygenation during one-lung ventilation. The secondary outcome was the change in the intrapulmonary shunt. Materials and Methods: Thirty patients undergoing one-lung ventilation were included. Patients in Group D (n = 15) received a bolus dose of 1 μg·kg^-1 dexmedetomidine at 10 min after induction of anaesthesia followed by an infusion of 0.4 μg·kg^-1·hr^-1 that was stopped at the end of the surgery, and those in the control group(Group C, n = 15) were given saline at the same dosage. Vital signs, PaO2, and pulmonary shunting (Qs/Qt) were compared. Results: During one-lung ventilation, the PaO2 in Group D increased significantly and Qs/Qt significantly decreased compared to Group C (PaO₂, 203.7 ± 42.3 mmHg vs. 173 ± 37.6 mmHg [P = 0.04] and Qs/Qt 19.8% ± 4.5% vs. 31% ± 2.4% [P < 0.0001], Group D and Group C, respectively). Conclusion: Intravenous administration of dexmedetomidine achieved an improvement in oxygenation during one-lung ventilation. This was associated with a decrease in pulmonary shunt. Use of intraoperative dexmedetomidine during thoracic surgery can be suggested.

Dexmedetomidine, One-Lung Ventilation, Intrapulmonary Shunt

Buget, M. , Sungur, Z. , Ozkan, B. , Yornuk, M. , Demircan, F. and Senturk, M. (2015) The Effect of Dexmedetomidine on Oxygenation and Intrapulmonary Shunt during One Lung Ventilation. Open Journal of Anesthesiology, 5, 135-141. doi: 10.4236/ojanes.2015.57025.