Fluoroscopy-guided hydrostatic reduction of intussusception in infancy: role of pharmacological premedication.

PURPOSE: Intussusception is one of the most common causes of paediatric emergency. Fluoroscopy-guided hydrostatic reduction is a common nonoperative management strategy for the treatment of intussusception. The role of pharmacological premedication in increasing the success rate of hydrostatic reduction is still controversial. The purpose of this study was to verify the presence of a possible correlation between pharmacological premedication and the percentage of hydrostatic reduction of intussusception in paediatric patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study considered children with a diagnosis of idiopathic intussusception treated at our hospital between January 2007 and June 2013. One group of patients underwent hydrostatic reduction by barium enema without any preliminary therapy. A second group of patients received pharmacological premedication with both a sedative and an anti-oedematous agent before the procedure.

RESULTS: A total of 398 patients were treated with barium enema for therapeutic purposes. In the group of patients who received no premedication (n = 254), 165 (65 %) children achieved hydrostatic reduction of the intussusception. Among the patients who received pharmacological premedication prior to barium enema (n = 144), 122 (85 %) children achieved resolution of the intussusception.

CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that the use of pharmacological premedication is effective for the reduction of the intussusception, as its limit patient stress, fluoroscopic time and radiation dose.