ABSTRACT
Conscious sedation is defined as a state of depressed consciousness in which the patient can be aroused by verbal or physical stimuli, maintains protective airway reflexes, and independently maintains a patent airway. Pediatric conscious sedation methods have developed in radiology to facilitate safe, high-quality diagnostic examinations on young or uncooperative children. Presedation evaluation is helpful to contact the parent or caregiver one or more days in advance in order to determine whether the child needs sedation, whether there are contraindications to sedation, and to obtain a pertinent medical history. Contraindications to sedation by radiology personnel include respiratory infection, compromised airway, a previous significant adverse reaction to sedatives, or significant underlying medical disease. The most commonly used drugs in radiology for pediatric conscious sedation include chloral hydrate, pentobarbital, midazolam and fentanyl. The entire presedation evaluation, sedation and monitoring, postsedation recovery and discharge condition and instructions must be documented in the child's medical record.
