SummaryIt has recently been suggested that recovery rooms should have dedicated anaesthetic cover during working hours to deal with serious life-threatening problems. This audit was undertaken to determine the incidence and severity of airway problems that occurred in the recovery room at a District General Hospital. One thousand consecutive patients who received a general anaesthetic were assessed. If an airway problem was identified, the patient's notes were examined to document the type of surgery and any predisposing factors which may have contributed. The incidence of airway problems in this study was found to be 2.8%, which was in agreement with previous studies and appears too low to warrant a full-time anaesthetic presence.

We conducted a randomised prospective double-blind placebo-controlled study to assess the efficacy of oral midazolam premedication in 50 ASA I and II female patients scheduled to undergo day case breast surgery. Anxiety was assessed using 100-mm visual analogue scales (VAS) and The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) psychometric questionnaire. Midazolam premedication did not significantly reduce either VAS or STAI score, although heart rate and systolic arterial pressure immediately before induction of anaesthesia were significantly lower in patients who received midazolam (p = 0.006 and 0.039, respectively). Induction of anaesthesia was achieved with a lower dose of propofol (p = 0.0009) and excellent (Grade I) conditions for insertion of a laryngeal mask airway were achieved more often after midazolam premedication (p = 0.038). Arterial desaturation during induction of anaesthesia and insertion of a laryngeal mask airway occurred more often in patients who received placebo (p = 0.022). There was a good correlation between VAS and STAI used to assess the anxiolytic effects of premedication. (Spearman coefficient 0.58, p < 0.0001).

We conducted a randomised prospective double‐blind placebo‐controlled study to assess the efficacy of oral midazolam premedication in 50 ASA I and II female patients scheduled to undergo day case breast surgery. Anxiety was assessed using 100‐mm visual analogue scales (VAS) and The State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) psychometric questionnaire. Midazolam premedication did not significantly reduce either VAS or STAI score, although heart rate and systolic arterial pressure immediately before induction of anaesthesia were significantly lower in patients who received midazolam (p = 0.006 and 0.039, respectively). Induction of anaesthesia was achieved with a lower dose of propofol (p = 0.0009) and excellent (Grade I) conditions for insertion of a laryngeal mask airway were achieved more often after midazolam premedication (p = 0.038). Arterial desaturation during induction of anaesthesia and insertion of a laryngeal mask airway occurred more often in patients who received placebo (p = 0.022). There was a good correlation between VAS and STAI used to assess the anxiolytic effects of premedication. (Spearman coefficient 0.58, p < 0.0001).

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