Oral premedication in children: Comparison of combination of midazolam-ketamine and oral midazolam- A Randomised trial

Introduction: Premedication with sedative drugs is often used in paediatric practice as one of the modalities to reduce preoperative anxiety in children undergoing surgery. It reduces both patient and parental anxiety and improves overall satisfaction. Also, provides anterograde amnesia and reduces postoperative behavioral changes and adverse outcomes in children. The ideal premedication in children should be readily acceptable and should have speedy and reliable onset with negligible side effects. Materials and Methods: After obtaining institutional medical ethics committee approval, sixty ASA physical status I or II children, aged 1-8 years scheduled for elective surgery were randomly allocated into one of the two groups. Group M (n=30): received preservative free oral midazolam 0.5mg/kg (1ml=5mg) + acetaminophen based syrup (5ml=120mg) upto maximum value of 0.4ml/kg. Group MK (n=30): received preservative free oral midazolam 0.25 mg/kg (1ml=5mg)with 3mg/kg oral ketamine(1ml=50mg) + acetaminophen based syrup (5ml=120mg) upto maximum value of 0.4ml/kg. Results: Combination of midazolam0.25mg/kg and ketamine3mg/kg provided faster onset and higher degree of sedation, comparable incidence of satisfactory parental separation and mask acceptance without any added side effects in comparison to midazolam 0.5mg/kg. Conclusion: Addition of low dose ketamine to midazolam as a premedication provides adequate sedation.