Progress in Pediatric Sedation Research

The practice of pediatric sedation continues to evolve, largely based on data that are produced by researchers in this field. This article reviews notable recent trends in research as reported in peer-reviewed journals, including large prospective database studies that have improved our understanding of the incidence and nature of adverse events in pediatric sedation. Along with this effort has come an attempt to better develop a new lexicon to describe “adverse events” or complications. In addition to these descriptive demographic articles, investigators continue to add to the cumulative experience with new drugs such as dexmedetomidine and older sedatives/analgesics such as ketamine and nitrous oxide in children. Finally, evaluation of the workload and trends in sedation utilization in children have been reported and will be reviewed; and future needs for pediatric sedation research are suggested.