Transcutaneous Carbon-dioxide Monitoring in Electrophysiological Procedures in Deep Sedation

Complex procedures for treatment of cardiac arrhythmias are usually performed under deep sedation, since a quiet position of the patient is usually required over several hours and a significant risk of injury is caused by unconsciously movements of the patient. The sedative medication inhibits respiration. This can result in an increase of CO2-levels or a reduction oxygen-levels in the blood. Therefore, oxygen saturation (finger clip) is monitored continuously and the CO2-levels in the blood are evaluated every half hour. The study aims to evaluate, whether additional continuous CO2 measurement (transcutaneous CO2 monitoring) has a safety benefit for patients in sedation. Patients are randomly divided into two groups. The first group receives the previous standard monitoring and the second group additionally receives the transcutaneous CO2 measurement. After completion of the procedure, all study-relevant parameters are collected. Finally, the investigators examine whether oxygen saturation decreases or CO2-level increases could be prevented by a continuous, transcutaneous CO2 measurement.