Propofol vs Sevoflurane Delirium in Postoperative Patients: A Large Look Back at Anesthesia Choices

Is this trial a fit for you?

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

This is a retrospective, single-center cohort study using routine data from Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and partners, spanning 2011 through 2026. It analyzes adult patients undergoing elective general anesthesia with a planned minimum surgery time of 30 minutes, excluding cardiac surgeries and those with preexisting delirium. The goal is to compare different anesthetic techniques (e.g., propofol vs sevoflurane) and their association with postoperative delirium, informing future guidelines in this area. The study design emphasizes observational associations rather than randomized testing, with data drawn from real-world clinical records across the hospital network. Findings could influence anesthesia practice guidelines if a technique is linked to lower delirium risk.

Why it matters

Who can join: the full rules

Inclusion Criteria:

* Adult patients (≥18 years) at the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (CCM/CVK) and the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (CBF) at Charité,
* undergoing elective surgery under general anesthesia
* with a planned surgery duration of ≥ 30 minutes

In addition, the following conditions must be met:

* The surgery must be the patient's first surgery per hospital stay to avoid dependencies and repeated measurements of the same person within a short time frame;
* The surgeries take place at Charité between January 1, 2011, and December 31, 2025.

Exclusion Criteria:

Patients in any of the following situations are excluded:

1. Cardiac surgery (this patient group requires specialized monitoring strategies and has postoperative delirium risk profiles that differ significantly from those of other types of surgery)
2. preoperatively diagnosed delirium, defined as positive results on the Nursing Delirium Screening Scale (NU-DESC) or the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU) during preoperative evaluations;
3. severe preoperative cognitive impairment, defined as a Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score \<15 points, or
4. preoperatively documented severe dementia
5. neurosurgical procedures (neurosurgical patients require specialized monitoring protocols and differ from other surgical patients in their postoperative delirium (POD) symptoms)
6. Patients who were already admitted to intensive care units prior to their elective surgery (these patients already have increased mortality and a different risk profile)
7. Patients who were already intubated or sedated prior to surgery (this group cannot undergo standardized POD screening)
8. High preoperative risk for postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) (specifically, patients with documented PONV grade 3 or PONV grade 4 risk are excluded, as this group is indicated for anesthesia with propofol)

Where it's running

• Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (CBF), Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
  Berlin, Germany Recruiting
• Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine Berlin
  Berlin, Germany Recruiting

Study contacts

• Study coordinator: Claudia Spies, MD, Prof.
• Email: claudia.spies@charite.de
• Phone: +49 30 450 55 11 02

Similar studies

Other studies for the same condition or treatment. Recruiting studies are listed first.

• Intranasal insulin to reduce delirium after heart surgery with a heart-lung machine

  This study tests whether giving intranasal insulin can reduce glycemic swings and delirium after elective heart surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass.

  Recruiting Fujian Medical University Union Hospital · Fuzhou, Fujian · NCT07893353

• Postoperative Pain Control in Elderly Knee Replacement

  This study tests two pain-management methods after knee replacement in adults 60 and older to see which one reduces delirium and improves recovery.

  Recruiting Ankara City Hospital Bilkent · Ankara, Çankaya · NCT07849517

• Perioperative transcranial photobiomodulation to see if it helps older adults recover brain function after surgery

  This trial tests whether applying light therapy to the brain around the time of surgery can reduce delayed brain recovery in older patients with pre-existing cognitive decline.

  Recruiting Peking University First Hospital · Beijing, Beijing Municipality · NCT07736092

• Risk of delirium and cognitive problems after TUR-P in older adults

  This study tests whether certain perioperative factors can predict delirium and postoperative cognitive dysfunction in people aged 65 and older undergoing transurethral resection.

  Recruiting Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University · Muğla · NCT07719712

• How anesthesia type affects thinking after bariatric sleeve surgery

  This observational study tests whether intravenous anesthesia or inhalational anesthesia leads to different cognitive outcomes after sleeve gastrectomy in adults with obesity.

  Recruiting Sehit Prof. Dr. Ilhan Varank Sancaktepe Training and Research Hospital · Istanbul, Sancaktepe · NCT07637357

• Preoperative cognitive screening and postoperative delirium in older adults undergoing hip replacement

  This study tests whether a brief preoperative cognitive screen (ALBA) can predict delirium within 72 hours after hip replacement in older adults.

  Recruiting Tomas Bata Hospital, Czech Republic · Brno and 6 other locations · NCT07432009

How to take part

1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.