Comparisons of fentanyl and sufentanil on recovery time after inguinal hernia repair in children: a randomized clinical trial

Abstract Background Inguinal hernia repair is a common pediatric procedure. We studied postoperative recovery times in children undergoing laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair with anesthesia induced by fentanyl versus sufentanil. Methods We performed a pilot randomized clinical trial between February and December 2022. Eligible children were assigned into two age groups, 2–6 and 6–12 years old groups. Then, children in each age group were randomly assigned into either the fentanyl (2 µg/kg) or sufentanil (0.2 µg/kg) group for anesthesia induction. Baseline characteristics were collected. The primary outcome was the postoperative recovery time, which was recorded as the time period from extubation to a Steward recovery score reaching 6. Secondary outcomes included surgical duration, anesthetic duration, intubation duration, and intraoperative hemorrhage. Results There were 300 children, with 75 children in each group. In the 2–6 years old group, children who received fentanyl had statistically significantly shorter postoperative recovery times than children who received sufentanil (0.9 ± 0.4 versus 1.5 ± 0.3 h, P < 0.001). However, in the 6–12 years old group, children who received fentanyl had statistically significantly longer postoperative recovery times than children who received sufentanil (1.2 ± 0.4 versus 0.8 ± 0.4 h, P < 0.001). Baseline characteristics and secondary outcomes were comparable between two groups. Conclusions Anesthesia induction with fentanyl or sufentanil resulted in different postoperative recovery times after laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair in children in different age groups. More studies are required to determine the appropriate induction anesthetic in children of different ages. Trial registration The study protocol was retrospectively registered online at the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (registration number ChiCTR2300072177, retrospectively registered on 06/06/2023).