CLAUSTROPHOBIA IN MRI: IS THERE A ROLE FOR DEXMEDETOMIDINE? AN OBSERVATIONAL CASE SERIES STUDY INVOLVING 11 PATIENTS

Mri can be a distressing and traumatic experience in many patients, especially in those with underlying anxiety and/or claustrophobia. we conducted a study to determine if dexmedetomidine as a sedative agent can alleviate these symptoms. dexmedetomidine is a potent and highly selective α-2 adrenergic receptor agonist which has sedative and analgesic properties. eleven adult patients (n=11) with a histroy of anxiety and/or claustrophobia undergoing mri who expressed their desire for sedation were recruited. dexmedetomidine was infused at 0.5 to 1.0 μg/kg over 10 minutes prior to scanning. eight patients (n=8) were able to complete the mri scan comfortably. the findings suggest that dexmedetomidine provides adequate sedation that can allow patients with anxiety and/or claustrophobia to undergo mri scanning succesfully in a large poproption of the population with anxiety. this result however is still preliminary and will need to be validated in a more robust clinical study.