title: Emergence Delirium With Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Among Military Veterans.
abstract: The clinical characteristics of emergence delirium (ED) associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among military veterans encompass transient agitation, restlessness, disorientation, and violent verbal and physical behaviors due to re-experiencing of PTSD-related incidents. Two cases of ED after general anesthesia associated with PTSD are presented. Different anesthesia methods were applied for the two cases. A traditional medical approach appeared not to prevent the incidence of ED. In the second case, dexmedetomidine infusion along with verbal coaching was effective in preventing ED for a veteran known to have "wild wake-ups" with prior anesthetics. Further clinical studies in effectively utilizing dexmedetomidine in this population with PTSD at high risk for ED are warranted.
authors.affiliation: Orlando VA Medical Center, UCF College of Medicine.
authors.forename: Son
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: Anesthesiology, Orlando VA Medical Center ; Courtesy Professor, UCF College of Nursing.
authors.forename: Mila
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pak
authors.affiliation: Anesthesiology, Orlando VA Medical Center.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Paoli
authors.affiliation: Associate Dean for Nursing Research, UCF College of Nursing.
authors.forename: Donna F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Neff
keywords: emergence delirium (ed); military veterans; post-traumatic stress disorder (ptsd)