Evaluation of the effect of nasal fentanyl in comparison with intravenous fentanyl in cataract surgery by phacoemulsification method

The risk of anesthesia increases with age, so it is necessary to choose a safe and effective method. In this study, we compared the effectiveness of intranasal fentanyl with intravenous fentanyl in patients undergoing cataract surgery.

This study was a triple-blind prospective randomized clinical trial (The patient, physician, and data analyzer were unaware of the patient grouping). The study was performed from April 2017 to March 2019 in Feyz Hospital, Isfahan, Iran. 90 patients over 18 years of age who were candidates for cataract surgery were included in the study and were divided in two groups receiving intravenous fentanyl (IVF) or intranasal fentanyl (INF). The dose of fentanyl in both groups was 1.5 μg/kg with a maximum of 100 μg. In the IVF group, 1 ml of normal saline was dripped into each nasal passage 10 minutes before surgery and intravenously fentanyl was injected 2 minutes before surgery. In the INF group, 1 ml of fentanyl was administered into each nostril 10 minutes before surgery and 2 ml of saline was administered intravenously two minutes before surgery.

In this study, there was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of mean heart rate (P=0.762), mean arterial blood oxygen saturation (P=0.262), mean systolic blood pressure (P=0.264), mean arterial blood pressure (0.462), satisfaction rate Patient (P=0.231), duration of surgery (P=0.612) and pain intensity (P=0.87). But in the intravenous fentanyl group (IVF), the level of sedation (P=0.002) and the level of surgeon satisfaction (P<0.001) were higher than intranasal fentanyl group (INF). There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of side effects (P=0.171) and surgery time (P=0.612). The mean VAS was not significantly different between the two groups.

The study showed that intranasal administration of fentanyl compared with intravenous administration of fentanyl provided similar sedation and cardiovascular response. Intranasal administration of fentanyl is a non-invasive, safe and effective method, that is easy to use and can be a viable alternative to intravenous administration.