New research has added more credence to the idea of opioid-free anesthesia for cardiac surgery.
A small retrospective study found no difference in a variety of postoperative outcomes, including hemodynamic stability, between patients who received an opioid-based anesthetic and those given opioid-free anesthesia with dexmedetomidine.
According to Sarah E. Bain, MD, the division head of cardiac anesthesia at Virginia Mason Franciscan Medical Center, in Seattle, although opioids have been a