PREMEDICATION DETERMINES THE CIRCULATORY RESPONSES TO RAPID SEQUENCE INDUCTION WITH SUFENTANIL FOR CARDIAC SURGERY

Thirty-three patients undergoing elective aortocoronary bypasswere allocated randomly to receive morphine 0.1 mg kg^–1i.m. and either lorazepam 50 µg kg^–1 by mouth orhyoscine 6 µg kg^–1 i.m. before rapid sequence inductionof anaesthesia with sufentanil 5 µg kg^–1 i.v. andsuxamethonium 1 mg kg^–1 i.v. Following induction and trachealintubation, patients premedicated with hyoscine had a significantlyhigher mean heart rate, mean arterial pressure, cardiac indexand left ventricular stroke-work index than patients premedicatedwith lorazepam. The incidence of new myocardial ischaemia waslow in both groups.