To investigate the current situation of and physicians' expectations for sedation treatment in the intensive care unit (ICU) in China, in order to provide a basis for ICU patients to undergo sedation treatment.

During the 2023 Annual Meeting of the Chinese Medical Association of Critical Care, a questionnaire survey was conducted and the returned questionnaires were descriptively analyzed.

Finally, 500 questionnaires were returned, and 497 valid questionnaires were analyzed after excluding 3 questionnaires in which the number of patients admitted per month was filled in incorrectly. The results revealed that there was a gap between clinicians' expectations of time to achieve sedation and real value, especially in patients requiring a single operation, status epilepticus patients, and patients with human-machine incoordination. More than 50% of physicians recognized that the premises of success in sedation were achieving the preset sedation goal and not having serious adverse events. Hypotension was a greater concern when sedation was initiated, and nearly 50% of physicians believed that the occurrence of hypotension is of greater concern when sedation is initiated.

There is a gap between clinicians' expectations of time to achieve sedation and real value, and hypotension is a greater concern when sedation is initiated. Therefore, sedative drugs with rapid effective sedation, high cycle inhibition, and other characteristics will be more in line with the current needs of ICU sedation treatment and improve physicians' experience with clinical sedation.