Does Ketamine is Safe and Effective for Procedural Sedation in Percutaneous Liver Biopsy in Children? A Cohort Study in Iran

Effective and safe procedural sedation is necessary for percutaneous liver biopsy in children. There are a number of different protocols for this purpose. The current study investigated ketamine and DPT cocktail (meperidine (Demerol®) promethazine (Phenergan®) chlorpromazine (Thorazine®)).
The current cohort of 80 Iranian children aimed at investigating percutaneous liver biopsy. Each of the 2 study groups (ketamine and DPT) included 40 patients. Both groups were matched by age (number of participants under and above 7 years old). The current study evaluated the efficacy of 2 protocols by CHEOPS (children’s hospital of Eastern Ontario pain scale) and visual analogue scale (VAS) pain scoring system and sedation scoring A,B,C, and D.
Ketamine group was sedated and recovered much more rapidly than the DPT receiving patients. Also, they had significantly less pain during the biopsy. The most common side effect of ketamine was vomiting (27%); in the other group, transient hypotension and tachycardia were more common.
Ketamine is a safe and effective choice for procedural sedation in percutaneous liver biopsy in children.