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Background: Preoperative anxiety is a common reaction in patients. Many techniques are used for alleviation of it, such as preoperative visit by the anesthetist, reassurance by a psychologist, and prescription of tranquilizer drugs. In this study we surveyed propofol compared to Midazolam on pre-operative anxiolysis. Methods and Materials: In randomized controlled double-blind clinical trial, 60 patient swith ASA class I candidates for elective abdominal operations were randomly allocated in 3 equal groups (propofol, midazolam and normal salin). Anxiety was measured with 2 different scales: visual analogue scale (VSA) and clinical global impression (CGI). Pulse rate (PR), blood pressure (BP), respiratory rate (RR), and saturation PO2 (SPO2) were measured before drug administration and 3 times after that in 2.5 min intervals. Results were analyzed with ANNOVA, repeated measures ANNOVA, TUKEY, and X2 tests. Results: There were no differences in demographic variables between groups. Both propofol and midazolam were more effective than placebo in anxiety reduction. Both drugs had equal effect (p>0.05). There was no significant difference in BP, PR, RR and SPO2 between two drugs. Conclusion: Both drugs were the same and more effective than placebo. Midazolam may be preferred for economical reasons.