Cough and hyperdynamic reaction cause considerable discomfort, and they may lead to postoperative surgical complication. To reduce coughing and hemodynamics during emergence, the efficacy of laryngotracheal spraying with lidocaine before intubation is not clear, particularly, in children. We investigated such effect during emergence from general anesthesia, in children.

Children were studied in a double blind manner: 105 ASA physical status I-II, aged 2-16 yrs, undergoing tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. Patients were randomly grouped into three (A, B, and C) by the lidocaine spray before endotracheal intubation: 4% lidocaine to the group A (n = 32), 10% lidocaine to the group B (n = 36), and normal saline to the group C (n = 37). The same dose (2 mg/kg) of lidocaine was applied. During emergence, patients were observed their cough and hemodynamics.

Lidocaine spray, irrespective of concentration, did not significantly diminish the cough and the hemodynamic reaction across the groups before and after the extubation as well as in the recovery room (P value = 0.44, 0.86, 0.17).

These findings support that the laryngotracheal spraying with lidocaine (2 mg/kg of 4% and 10%) before endotracheal intubation does not reduce the cough and hemodynamic reactions during emergence from general anesthesia in children.