The Impact of General Anesthetics on Postoperative Delirium: A Narrative Review Based on Clinical Randomized Controlled Trials from the Last Five Years.

Postoperative delirium (POD) is an acute, reversible neurocognitive disorder characterized by confusion and altered consciousness. With the improvement in research methodologies and the introduction of innovative clinical drugs in recent years, a growing number of randomized controlled trials have been conducted. This article aims to conduct a comprehensive review of the efficacy of general anesthetics-including propofol, ciprofol, sevoflurane, ketamine, esketamine, dexmedetomidine, benzodiazepines, opioids, and lidocaine-in preventing and managing POD, based on randomized controlled trials published in the past five years. Propofol has advantages in preventing POD in pediatric patients. However, its efficacy compared with inhalational anesthetics still requires individualized evaluation in elderly patients. The novel drugs ciprofol and remimazolam exhibit favorable safety profiles and do not increase the risk of POD. The efficacy of dexmedetomidine shows variability across patient populations and surgical types. In addition, specific opioid drugs and lidocaine also demonstrate preventive potential when administered in a standardized manner.