0934 EVALUATING THE EFFECTS OF GENERAL ANESTHESIA ON SLEEP IN CHILDREN UNDERGOING ELECTIVE SURGERY

Abstract

Introduction: Sleep disturbance during early childhood can lead to cognitive impairment, behavioural disorders and emotional dysregulation. There is increasing interest on the factors that may contribute to impaired sleep following surgery. The impact of general anesthesia on sleep has become of emerging interest. The objective of this study is to identify potential effects of a general anesthetic on sleep. Method(s): This is a prospective, observational study with children, aged 18 months to 8 years, undergoing general anesthesia for elective surgery. Subjects underwent actigraphy sleep monitoring for 14 days: 7 consecutive days prior to and following the surgery. Data regarding baseline behaviour patterns were collected using standardized behavioural assessments. One and three months after surgery, the actigraph was worn again for 7 days with completion of behavioural assessments. Result(s): Eighteen patients (mean age 4.7 years, 78% male) underwent surgery. All patients received sevoflurane as the inhaled anesthetic agent. The median anesthetic duration was 111 minutes. Between baseline and 7-day postoperative period, actigraphy measures were not significantly different (sleep efficiency: p=0.67, total sleep time: p=0.99, wake after sleep onset: p=0.16, sleep onset latency: p=0.29). Among the 18 patients, 7 patients completed both the 1- and 3-month follow-up, where no significant differences were found in actigraphy measures across all time points. Additionally, no significant differences in mean scores were found for overall internalizing behaviour, (F(1.24, 7.43)=0.28, p=0.66), externalizing behaviour (F(1.23, 7.35)=0.28, p=0.67) and executive functioning (F(1.02, 4.08)=0.28, p=0.83). Conclusion(s): In this study, general anesthesia did not cause sleep disturbance or negative behaviour changes in children. These findings are reassuring to both physicians and parents.