A prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study of dexmedetomidine as an adjunct to epidural analgesia after thoracic surgery.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that after thoracic surgery, the supplementation of a low-dose thoracic epidural (ED) bupivacaine (0.125%) infusion by intravenous (IV) dexmedetomidine decreases analgesic requirement without causing respiratory depression. The primary endpoint was the need for additional ED bupivacaine administered through patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA).