Comparison of lumbar epidural bupivacaine with fentanyl or clonidine for postoperative analgesia in children with cerebral palsy after single-event multilevel surgery.

Aim: To compare diazepam use, muscle spasm, analgesia, and side effects when clonidine or fentanyl are added to epidural bupivacaine in children with cerebral palsy after multilevel orthopaedic surgery.

Method: Fifty children were prospectively randomized to receive clonidine (n=24, mean age 10y 10mo [SD 2y 11mo]) or fentanyl (n=26, mean age 10y 11mo [SD 2y 10mo]).

Results: There was no difference in primary outcome measures: median diazepam use (fentanyl 0, interquartile range [IQR] 0-0; clonidine 0, IQR 0-0; p=0.