Role of dexmedetomidine in brain injury: a systematic review

Abstract

Background: Brain injuries are major health concern worldwide, that have debilitating effects on patients and affect patients’ quality of life; therefore, we are in urgent need of identifying medications that have neuroprotective properties and help to maintain the patients’ cognitive function. Dexmedetomidine is a sedative medication commonly used in ICU situations; recent studies show that it may have neuroprotective properties via different mechanisms. Aim: The aim of this article is to review available literature regarding the impact of using dexmedetomidine in various types of brain injury. Method: A systematic review of the published papers on the PubMed and google scholar that investigated the effects of dexmedetomidine on patients with different brain injuries was employed. Results: A total of 17 papers were included in this review, of which 1 was a case report, 6 were animal studies, 1 was a retrospective descriptive study, 2 were retrospective cohorts, 5 were randomized controlled trials, 1 was a scoping review, and 1 was a meta-analysis. These papers demonstrated the effects of dexmedetomidine on patients with traumatic brain injury, intracerebral hemorrhage, ischemic brain injury, status epilepticus, and on patients undergoing craniocerebral surgeries. Conclusion: Dexmedetomidine is a very promising drug to be used in different types of brain injuries and in craniocerebral surgeries because it has demonstrated impressive neuroprotective properties by a variety of mechanisms.