Objective To explore the effect of audio-guided breathing in the emergence period of elderly patients after general anesthesia.Methods By convenience sampling, 110 patients transferred to post-anesthesia care unit （PACU） after surgery under general anesthesia were selected and divided into an observation group and a control group, with 55 cases in each group.The control group received routine nursing care for extubation in PACU, while the observation group were given deep breathing instruction by audio on the basis of the control group.Arterial blood gas indexes, the length of stay in the PACU, respiratory rate （RR） at 1 min, 5 min, 10 min, 15 min after extubation were compared between the two groups.Results The results of arterial blood gas （PaO2、PaCO2、SaO2） , the length of stay in the PACU, RR at 1,5,10,15 min after extubation in the observation group were better than those in the control group （all P＜0.05）.Conclusion For the elderly patients after extubation during the emergence period after general anesthesia, audio-guided breathing can promote the recovery of spontaneous respiratory function, reduce the length of stay in the PACU, improve the quality of recovery and enhance the sense of experience.