Sore throat is commonly seen after general anaesthesia with endotracheal intubation. It is distressing for the patient as it delays return to work, increases morbidity and bad memories of the surgical period with disturbances in sleep. This double-blinded prospective randomized study was done to know the efficacy of intravenous
dexamethasone in decreasing the incidence of postoperative
sore throat at 1, 6 and 24 h after tracheal extubation. 60 patients aged 18-50 years scheduled for ear surgeries under
general anesthesia with endotracheal intubation, were randomly allocated into two groups A and B. The patients received either intravenous 0.2 mg/kg diluted till 4 ml
dexamethasone (group A, n = 30) or 4 ml
normal saline (group B, n = 30) prior to induction. Endotracheal intubation was done to secure the airway. Follow up for the incidence of
sore throat was done at 1, 6 and 24 h post-extubation. At 1 h, 6 h and 24 h after extubating the patient, the incidence of
sore throat in the control group was significantly less in
dexamethasone group compared to the control group (p < 0.039, 0.024, 0.032) respectively. Prophylactic intravenous
dexamethasone in a dose of 0.2 mg/kg can reduce the incidence of postoperative
sore throat after extubation with minimal side effects.