Ketamine Versus Co-administration of Ketamine and Propofol for Procedural Sedation in a Pediatric Emergency Department

Procedural sedation and analgesia (PSA) is a frequent occurrence in pediatric emergency departments. The goals of PSA include maximizing analgesia and amnesia, and minimizing adverse events while ensuring stable cardiopulmonary function. For decades, ketamine has been the main pharmacologic agent used for pediatric PSA. Numerous studies support the use of ketamine for sedation, amnesia, and analgesia on children undergoing painful procedures in the emergency department setting. Research has continually shown ketamine to cause emergence phenomenon, laryngospasm and vomiting. Propofol is a sedative-hypnotic widely used for procedural sedation in adult emergency departments. The advantages of propofol include rapid onset, with quick and predictable recovery time, and antiemetic effects. Disadvantages include dose-dependent hypotension, bradycardia, respiratory depression, as well as pain with injection. In addition, propofol does not provide any analgesia. Ketamine and propofol administered together have been successfully utilized in a variety of settings, including dermatologic, cardiovascular, and interventional radiological procedures in children. The co-administration of ketamine and propofol has been shown to preserve sedation while minimizing the respective adverse events. When used in combination, doses administered of each can be reduced, while producing a more stable hemodynamic and respiratory profile. Furthermore, this combination may reduce the frequency of emergence reactions, vomiting, and the pain of propofol injection. To date, there are no randomized controlled trials evaluating the co-administration of ketamine and propofol versus ketamine monotherapy for PSA in the Pediatric Emergency Department.