Therapeutic Study Evaluating the Efficacy of Noradrenaline in the Prevention of Hypotension Related to Intubation for Cardiac or Thoracic Surgery

Arterial hypotension during general anaesthesia (GA) is a serious event. While hypotension can occur during surgery, it usually occurs following induction of GA (i.e. following the injection of drugs to enable intubation). This is due to the injection of large doses of anaesthetic drugs with a vasodilatory effect over a short period of time to induce a deep sleep to allow intubation to take place for artificial ventilation. The prevention of hypotension during surgery has been extensively studied. In contrast, the prevention of hypotension following GA induction has been the subject of only two randomised studies in the ICU and three non-randomised studies in the OR with small numbers of patients. The level of evidence for the use of noradrenaline in the operating theatre remains low. The hypothesis of the study is that noradrenaline initiated during preoxygenation can reduce the incidence of hypotension during induction of general anaesthesia.