Objective: To study the relationship between the target effective site concentration (Ce) of rocuronium and the degree of recovery from neuromuscular blockade in elderly patients.
Methods: 50 elderly patients (ASA grade II) scheduled for selective surgical procedure under general anaesthesia were randomly divided into two groups, A and B, with 25 cases in each group. The Ce of rocuronium for intubation was 3 μg·ml(-1) in both groups, and the Ce during operation were 0.8 and 1.0 μg·ml(-1) in group A and B, respectively. When target controlled infusion of rocuronium was stopped, without the administration of reversal agents for neuromuscular blockade, the relationship between Ce and the first twitch height (T1) was studied by regression analysis.
Results: There was a significant linear relationship between Ce and T1, and there was no statistical difference in regression coefficient and interception between group A and B (P>0.05).
Conclusion: The degree of recovery from neuromuscular blockade could be judged by the target effective site concentration of rocuronium at the time of reversal from neuromuscular blockade in the elderly patients.
Keywords: Rocuronium; geriatrics; neuromuscular blockade; pharmacodynamics.