ArticleCritical care explorations2020
Effects of a Clonidine Taper on Dexmedetomidine Use and Withdrawal in Adult Critically Ill Patients-A Pilot Study.
Article in Critical care explorations, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05575219 (Protocolized Initiation of Clonidine to Prevent Dexmedetomidine Withdrawal), which is not on this map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Protocolized Initiation of Clonidine to Prevent Dexmedetomidine Withdrawal: A Prospective Cohort Study
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 18 citations in OpenAlex.
- Iatrogenic withdrawal syndrome in adult intensive care unit: a scoping review.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Pooled it
- Paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia associated with dexmedetomidine withdrawal in an adult liver transplant recipient: A case report.World journal of critical care medicine · 2026Article
- Enhancing Caudal Analgesia in Children: A Narrative Review of Clonidine and Dexmedetomidine as Adjuvants.Cureus · 2025Review
- Clonidine use during dexmedetomidine weaning: A systematic review.World journal of critical care medicine · 2023Article
- Effect of Enteral Guanfacine on Dexmedetomidine Use in the ICU.Critical care explorations · 2022Article
- Biased, Bitopic, Opioid-Adrenergic Tethered Compounds May Improve Specificity, Lower Dosage and Enhance Agonist or Antagonist Function with Reduced Risk of Tolerance and Addiction.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Beneficial Extracardiac Effects of Cardiovascular Medications.Current cardiology reviews · 2022Review
- How to Manage Withdrawal of Sedation and Analgesia in Mechanically Ventilated COVID-19 Patients?Journal of clinical medicine · 2021Review
- Severe Fentanyl Withdrawal Associated With Medetomidine Adulteration: A Multicenter Study From Philadelphia, PA.Journal of addiction medicineArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesProlonged use of dexmedetomidine has become increasingly common due to its favorable sedative and anxiolytic properties. Hypersympathetic withdrawal symptoms have been reported with abrupt discontinuation of prolonged dexmedetomidine infusions. Clonidine has been used to transition patients off dexmedetomidine infusions for ICU sedation. The objective of this study was to compare the occurrence of dexmedetomidine withdrawal symptoms in ICU patients transitioning to a clonidine taper versus those weaned off dexmedetomidine alone after prolonged dexmedetomidine infusion.
designThis was a single-center, prospective, double cohort observational study conducted from November 2017 to December 2018.
settingMedical-surgical, cardiothoracic, and neurosurgical ICUs in a tertiary care hospital. PATIENTS: We included adult ICU patients being weaned off dexmedetomidine after receiving continuous infusions for at least 3 days.
interventionsPatients were either weaned off dexmedetomidine alone or with a clonidine taper at the discretion of the providers. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN
resultsThe primary outcome was the incidence of at least two dexmedetomidine withdrawal symptoms during a single assessment within 24 hours of dexmedetomidine discontinuation. Time on dexmedetomidine after wean initiation and difference in medication cost were also evaluated. Forty-two patients were included in this study: 15 received clonidine (Group C) and 27 weaned off dexmedetomidine alone (Group D). There was no significant difference in the incidence of two or more withdrawal symptoms between groups (73% in Group C vs 59% in Group D;
conclusionsOur study demonstrated that patients receiving clonidine were able to wean off dexmedetomidine more rapidly, with a considerable cost savings and no difference in dexmedetomidine withdrawal symptoms, compared with patients weaned off dexmedetomidine alone. Clonidine may be a safe, effective, and practical option to transition patients off prolonged dexmedetomidine infusions.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.