Chloral hydrate sedation of children undergoing CT and MR imaging: safety as judged by American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines.

Objective: The purpose of this prospective study was to determine the frequency of adverse events associated with supplemented and unsupplemented chloral hydrate sedation in a select group of children undergoing CT or MR imaging using the revised American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) monitoring and management guidelines for pediatric sedation. The AAP guidelines do not recommend drug selection or dosages but define patient selection, discharge criteria, and monitoring standards for sedating children.

Subjects And Methods: This prospective study included 410 children 4 years of age or younger who were scheduled for CT and MR imaging as outpatients.