Emergence from general anesthesia is a critical period of anesthetic management (1. Popat, 2012). The noxious stimuli of an endotracheal tube as well as the excitement stage of anesthesia, commonly seen prior to return of consciousness while emerging from general anesthesia, both lead to emergence phenomena of coughing, straining, and restlessness in addition to physiologic derangements (2. Atkinson, 1987). Physiologically, emergence from anesthesia is associated with rising sympathetic tone (as evidenced by elevated catecholamine levels and the resultant hemodynamic changes of increasing heart rate and blood pressure), intracranial pressure, and intraocular pressure. Airway tone and reflexes are also problematic as they may be depressed by the lingering pharmacologic effects of anesthetics and analgesics leading to decreased airway obstruction or aspiration events. Airway reflexes may also be exaggerated while traversing the excitement stage; this can lead to undesirable consequences of coughing, breath-holding, bucking or in extreme cases laryngospasm. A smooth emergence is preferable for all patients but is required for those patients who would not tolerate the above physiologic changes (e.g. severe aortic stenosis or coronary artery disease, both of which would poorly tolerate tachycardia) or those would be at risk in terms of the procedure that was performed (cerebral aneurysm clipping, carotid endarterectomy, thyroidectomy: procedures in which stress fresh surgical wounds with hypertension and straining would be undesirable).