Assessment of Psychomotor Recovery after Etomidate and Propofol Induction: A Randomized Double-Blind Trial

The very idea of faster recovery and early ambulation has prompted patients to opt for day care surgeries. The concept of ERAS (enhanced recovery after surgery) is the backbone to achieve this goal. We conducted this study with primary objective to compare the post-operative recovery with etomidate and propofol in terms of early recovery (awakening), intermediate recovery (psychomotor and cognitive recovery) and ambulation “home readiness” and secondary objective to study the adverse effects.

60 eligible patients scheduled for day care gynaecological procedures were randomised in two groups of 30 each. Group E received etomidate 0.2mg/kg and group P received propofol 2mg/kg. Early, intermediate and late postoperative recovery (ambulation) was studied in both groups.

Demography between the groups were comparable while hemodynamic fluctuations were more with propofol (p>0.05), early recovery was faster with etomidate (p = 0.07), psychomotor tests revealed better alertness with etomidate (p= 0.1) and patient could ambulate earlier in etomidate group.

Both propofol and Etomidate facilitate early recovery but etomidate provides hemodynamic stability with early awakening, more alert patients and better ambulation and was found to be superior for day care surgeries.