Conscious sedation in pediatric dental procedures: Experience from Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, Northwestern Nigeria

Abstract

Abstract Background: The management of fear and anxiety in children scheduled for dental procedures has been a great challenge to the operating dental surgeon. Despite several controversies regarding the effectiveness, and safety of conscious sedation in dental and minor oral surgical procedures, it is widely used nowadays in dental practice. This study aimed to present a retrospective analysis of pediatric dental patients managed under conscious sedation. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study conducted over 5 years. After obtaining ethical approval from the research and ethics committee of the institution, the case records of all patients from 15 years and below who had a dental procedure under conscious sedation were retrieved. The demographics, procedures performed, the drug and dosage used, and length of the procedure were also recorded. Data obtained were analyzed using a statistical package for social sciences (IBM SPSS) version 25. Results: A total of 196 patients were included, 92 (46.9%) males and 104 (53.1%) females in the age range of 1–14 years and mean ± SD of 6.79 ± 2.98 years. The age categories were analyzed against the gender which revealed more female children between 6 and 10 years with no statistically significant difference (χ 2 = 4.566; df = 2; P = 0.102). The conscious sedation was done with ketamine 1–2 mg/kg intravenously in 72 patients (36.7%) and 3–4 mg/kg intramuscularly in 124 patients (63.3%), and additional doses were given in 93 patients (47.4%). Pulpectomy only constitutes the highest procedure performed in 42 patients (21.4%). The range length of the procedures was 5–67 min. Multiple procedures were performed in 52 (26.5%) of the patients. All patients were monitored until complete recovery, and no complications were recorded. Conclusion: Conscious sedation with ketamine was found effective and safe during dental and minor oral surgical procedures. With good functional suction, conscious sedation can provide excellent patient cooperation in carrying out multiple procedures in pediatric dental patients.