Midlatency auditory evoked potentials in children: effect of age and general anaesthesia.
BACKGROUND
Midlatency auditory evoked potentials (MLAEP) are a promising tool for monitoring suppression of sensory processing during anaesthesia and might help to avoid awareness. MLAEP in children are different to those in adults and the exact changes during general anaesthesia are unknown.


METHODS
In 49 children of age between 2 and 12 yr, MLAEP were recorded before anaesthesia, during tracheal intubation, at steady-state balanced anaesthesia, and after extubation.


RESULTS
MLAEP were recordable in all children in the awake (premedicated) state with latencies but not amplitudes dependent on children's age. MLAEP latencies significantly increased during tracheal intubation and steady-state anaesthesia. Changes in amplitudes were inconsistent. All MLAEP variables returned to near baseline values after extubation.


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study imply that MLAEP can successfully be recorded during anaesthesia in children above the age of 2 yr. Further studies are necessary before MLAEP might be applicable for monitoring purposes in paediatric anaesthesia.
Daunderer
M
M
Clinic for Anaesthesiology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Nussbaumstr. 20, D-80336 Munich, Germany. dr.daunderer@web.de
Feuerecker
M S
MS
Scheller
B
B
Pape
N B
NB
Schwender
D
D
Kuhnle
G E
GE
D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000768:Anesthesia, General; D018685:Anesthetics, Inhalation / Q000494:pharmacology; D001364:Awareness / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D020878:Device Removal; D005072:Evoked Potentials, Auditory / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007442:Intubation, Intratracheal; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D016343:Monitoring, Intraoperative / Q000379:methods*; D011930:Reaction Time
D018685:Anesthetics, Inhalation