The effect of gender on EC(50) of remifentanil to prevent pain during injection of microemulsion propofol.

Background: Propofol injection pain is an unpleasant experience to patients and its prevalence can be influenced by age and gender. We determined the half maximal effective concentration (EC(50)) of remifentanil for preventing the microemulsion propofol injection pain in the male and female adult groups.

Methods: After institutional review board approval, a total of 60 patients were assigned into 2 groups depending on their gender: group M (male, 20-65 yr) and group F (female, 20-65 yr).