Abstract:Objective To observe the effect of desflurane on general anesthesia in elderly patients with diabetes.Methods This study is a prospective study. A total of 112 elderly patients with diabetes who were admitted to Anyang People's Hospital from March 2021 to June 2023 were selected as the study subjects. According to the order of admission, they were classified into the conventional group (56 cases) and the experimental group (56 cases) by random number table. The conventional group was given conventional general anesthesia, and the experimental group was given desflurane assisted general anesthesia. The postoperative analgesic and sedative effects, neurological functions, cognitive functions, awakening situation and the occurrence of anesthesia related side effects of the patients in the two groups were compared.Results Under different anesthesia regimens, the VAS scores of the experimental group at 6h, 12h, and 48h after surgery were 4.25±1.33 points, 3.65±0.53 points, and 2.77±0.36 points, lower than the conventional group (5.18±1.76 points, 4.31±1.72 points, and 3.55±0.82 points); the RSS scores of the experimental group were 3.77±0.46 points, 3.36±0.25 points, and 3.11±0.16 points, higher than the conventional group (3.02±0.69 points, 2.73±0.65 points, and 2.31±0.59 points) (P<0.05). NSE and S100β of the experimental group were 15.35±3.27 ng/mL and 12.29±3.14 pg/mL, lower than the conventional group (18.64±4.25 ng/mL and 15.18±3.76 pg/mL) (P<0.05). The MMSE and MoCA scores of the experimental group were 24.12±5.28 points and 24.33±5.72 points, higher than the conventional group (21.45±5.36 points and 21.29±5.31 points) (P<0.05). The eye opening time, directional force recovery time, extubation time, and hospitalization time of the experimental group were 15.44±3.46 minutes, 17.62±4.14 minutes, 24.11±5.15 hours, and 10.32±2.49 days, slightly higher than the conventional group (14.45±3.13 minutes, 16.19±4.21 minutes, 22.36±5.27 hours, and 9.63±1.79 days) (P>0.05). The incidence of anesthesia related side effects was 14.29% (8/56), slightly higher than the conventional group [10.71% (6/56)] (P>0.05).Conclusion Desflurane assisted general anesthesia can enhance the postoperative analgesia and sedation effect of elderly patients with diabetes undergoing surgery. It can effectively avoid neurological damage and improve postoperative cognitive function without significantly affecting the quality of recovery or increasing the risk of anesthesia.