Perioperative Clonidine Does Not Reduce CV Events in Patients Having Noncardiac Surgery (POISE-2)

Clonidine, a centrally acting a-agonist, does not reduce the risk of perioperative myocardial infarction or death in noncardiac surgery; however, it did cause clinically significant bradycardia and hypotension. The findings of the Perioperative Ischemic Evaluation-2 Trial [POISE-2; Devereaux PJ et al. N Engl J Med 2014] are discussed in this article.