Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39192047›Full record

SynthesisCanadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthesie2025

Effects of dexamethasone on opioid consumption in pediatric tonsillectomy: a systematic review with meta-analysis.

Naoko Niimi, Makoto Sumie, Marina Englesakis, Alan Yang, Julia Olsen, Richard Cheng, Jason T Maynes, Paolo Campisi, Jason Hayes, William C K Ng and 1 more

Abstract readSystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Canadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthesie, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. [Clinical practice guideline for perioperative pain management in pediatric low-temperature plasma tonsillectomy].Lin chuang er bi yan hou tou jing wai ke za zhi = Journal of clinical otorhinolaryngology head and neck surgery · 2026
    Guideline
  2. Pooled it
  3. Postoperative pain management in children.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2026
    Review
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Naoko NiimiDepartment of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON, Canada.
Makoto SumieDepartment of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON, Canada.
Marina EnglesakisLibrary and Information Services, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Alan YangChild Health Evaluative Sciences, SickKids Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Julia OlsenDepartment of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON, Canada.
Richard ChengSchool of Medicine, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
Jason T MaynesDepartment of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON, Canada.
Paolo CampisiDepartment of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON, Canada.
Jason HayesDepartment of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON, Canada.
William C K NgDepartment of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON, Canada.
Kazuyoshi AoyamaDepartment of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, ON, Canada. kazu.aoyama@utoronto.ca.ORCID 0000-0002-7502-0896

Funding

Hospital for Sick Children POS Summerstudentship Program
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeTonsillectomy is one of the most common ambulatory procedures performed in children worldwide, with around 40,000 procedures performed in Canada every year. Although a prior systematic review indicated a clear role for dexamethasone as an analgesic adjunct, the quantity effect on opioid consumption is unknown. In the current systematic review with meta-analysis, we hypothesized that the use of dexamethasone reduces perioperative opioid consumption in pediatric tonsillectomy but does not increase rates of postoperative hemorrhage. SOURCE: We systemically searched MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Databases, and Web of Science from inception to 23 April 2024. Randomized controlled trials that compared intravenous dexamethasone to placebo in pediatric tonsillectomy were included in the study. The primary outcome was perioperative opioid consumption, and the secondary outcomes included the incidence of postoperative hemorrhage. We used a random effects meta-analysis to compute the mean difference (MD) or risk ratio (RR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) for each outcome. PRINCIPAL

findingsOf the 1,329 studies identified in the search, we included 16 in the final analysis. Intravenous dexamethasone administration significantly reduced opioid consumption (MD, -0.11 mg·kg

conclusionsIntravenous dexamethasone reduced perioperative opioid consumption in pediatric tonsillectomy without increasing the incidence of postoperative hemorrhage. STUDY REGISTRATION: PROSPERO ( CRD42023440949 ); first submitted 4 September 2023.

Indexed as

Analgesics, OpioidDexamethasonePostoperative PainTonsillectomyChildHumansPostoperative HemorrhageRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicAnalgesics, OpioidDexamethasonedexamethasonegeneral anesthesiaopioidtonsillectomy

Identifiers

PMID39192047

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.