Background: Postoperative sore throat is a common complication following endotracheal intubation during general anesthesia. Dexamethasone has analgesic properties and is effective in reducing postoperative sore throat. This study investigated the effects of different doses of dexamethasone on reducing sore throat.
Methods: This study included 100 patients who were candidates for Ophthalmologic surgery. Participants were randomly divided into four groups of 25 patients. One group received 6 mg, one group received 8 mg, one group received 10 mg of intranasal dexamethasone, and one group received intranasal normal saline. Symptoms of sore throat, cough, and hoarseness were recorded after surgery and analyzed using SPSS version 27.
Finding: After analysis, no statistically significant differences were observed in demographic characteristics, tracheal intubation variables, duration of surgery, and postoperative outcomes. During the recovery period and up to 6 hours after admission, the dexamethasone groups showed a significant reduction in sore throat, cough, and hoarseness compared with the control group.
Conclusion: The present study showed that increasing the dose of dexamethasone was associated with a decreasing trend in the incidence of sore throat. However, its effectiveness after 6 hours was not significantly different from the control group. In addition, the use of intranasal dexamethasone demonstrated the ability to reduce hoarseness and cough following intubation.
Keywords: Intranasal dexamethasone; Sore throat; Endotracheal intubation; Ophthalmologic surgery