Effects of lidocaine and k-y jellies on sore throat, cough, and hoarseness following endotracheal anaesthesia.

unlabelledTracheal intubation for general anaesthesia is often associated with postoperative sore throat, hoarseness and cough which can be distressing to patients. We compared the effects of lidocaine and K-Y jellies on postoperative sore throat, cough and hoarseness of voice following endotracheal anaesthesia.

methodsNinety-two ASA I or II patients scheduled for elective surgery under endotracheal general anaesthesia were randomly allocated into two groups. Tracheal tubes were lubricated with either 2% lidocaine jelly (LJ) or K-Y jelly (KYJ) for the groups and the patients were interviewed at 1, 12 and 24 hours post extubation.

resultsThe mean scores for sore throat were lower in the KYJ group than the LJ group but this was only statistically significant at 12 hours (p = 0.02). The incidence of sore throat, hoarseness and cough were also lower in the KYJ than in the LJ group but these were not significant. While the incidence of sore throat was comparable among both sexes in the LJ group, it was higher in females (55.6%) than in males (18.8%) in the KYJ group (p = 0.02). Whereas in patients older than 30 years the incidence of sore throat, hoarseness and cough were similar in both groups, in patients less than 30 years, there were significant differences (p = 0.01 and 0.02 respectively). The incidence of side effects was similar in both groups irrespective of duration of intubation.

conclusionK-Y jelly is superior to lidocaine jelly in preventing postoperative sore throat, and in reducing the incidence of hoarseness of voice and cough. Postopearive throat complaints are more common in females than males.