Sedation
All patients received sedation throughout the procedure. At the
beginning of the procedure, an intravenous propofol bolus of 0.5 mg/kg
was administered, and a nasopharyngeal temperature probe was inserted
and located in the esophagus to measure the esophageal temperature
during the procedure. Maintenance of sedation was performed with a
continuous intravenous propofol administration with a dosage of
1.25~2 mg/kg/hr. As an analgesic, an intravenous drip
infusion of buprenorphine with a dosage of 1.0 µg/kg was also
administered at the beginning of the procedure and was properly added if
patients complained of pain. The bispectral index was continuously
monitored by a BIS monitoring system (A-3000 BIS XP Platform, Aspect
Medical Systems, Newton, MA) to evaluate the sedation level of the
patients. To maintain the BIS index level between 50 and 70, an
intravenous propofol bolus of 0.5 mg/kg was additionally administered,
and the dosage of the continuous intervenous propofol administration was
also adjusted according to the sedation level of the patients, if
necessary12-13.