Coughing commonly occurs in patients emerging from general endotracheal anesthesia and is prominent in smokers due to underlying airway irritation. Clinical techniques used to mitigate emergence coughing include intravenous narcotics, intravenous or topical lidocaine, and deep extubation. Reduction of coughing by instilling lidocaine into the endotracheal tube cuff has been shown to be effective in long cases. Research has not confirmed efficacy of this technique in short cases.

Does administration of intracuff lidocaine decrease coughing during emergence of smokers in short cases requiring general endotracheal anesthesia?

This study was a randomized, double blind, posttestonly design that ...