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UW Health SMPH

Pediatric Critical Care

What to Expect at the Pediatric Sedation Clinic

Pediatric Sedation Clinic Contact Information
 
(608) 262-4402
 
The top priority for the Pediatric Sedation Clinic staff at American Family Children's Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, is to provide for each child a safe, but effective means of helping them through a procedure.
 
Typical Procedures Requiring Sedation
 
Typical procedures for which children are sedated include MRI scans, CT scans or other procedures that are not painful but require a child to hold still for a long period of time. Other procedures that require sedation include painful procedures such as spinal taps or catheter placement or removal.
 
Steps in the Sedation Process
  • The Pediatric Sedation Clinic receives a request from a child's doctor or practitioner asking for sedation for a procedure.
  • The child's health history is reviewed to determine if it is safe for the child to be sedated.
  • If it is determined that it is safe to sedate a child, a scheduler will call the family to provide information about arrival times and eating guidelines. This information will also be mailed to families.
  • The family will be instructed to bring the child to the Sedation Clinic up to 1½ hours before the procedure time.
  • When the child arrives in the clinic, if an IV is needed, clinicians place a numbing cream on appropriate body sites.
  • Children are then examined and a careful health history is obtained to determine once again if it is safe to perform sedation. If a child has a current cough, cold, fever, or is vomiting, clinicians may not be able to proceed with the sedation that day.
  • If it is safe to proceed, providers will discuss the choices for sedation with parents and children - if age appropriate.
  • Parents are allowed to remain with the child at all times during the sedation, though on rare occasions some exceptions may be made.
  • Children are permitted to drink fluids after awakening. Once they are back to a baseline status for at least 30 minutes, they may leave the Sedation Clinic.
Sedation cannot not be performed if a child has a history of:
  • Sleep apnea or central apnea
  • Facial disorders that distort the airway
  • Uncontrolled seizures
  • Uncontrolled gastric reflux disease
  • Increased pressure on the brain