Intravenous Anesthetics
Key Points ▪ The introduction of thiopental into clinical practice in 1934 marked the beginning of modern intravenous (IV) anesthesia. Today, IV anesthetics are used for induction and maintenance of…
Avoiding Patient Harm in Anesthesia: Human Performance and Patient Safety
Key Points ▪ Excellent clinical performance is not achieved by the use of sound medical knowledge alone, as clinicians have to face multifaceted challenges not just medical issues. There is…
Cerebral Physiology and the Effects of Anesthetic Drugs
Key Points ▪ The brain has a high metabolic rate and receives approximately 12% to 15% of cardiac output. Under normal circumstances, cerebral blood flow (CBF) is approximately 50 mL/100…
Pulmonary Pharmacology and Inhaled Anesthetics
Key Points ▪ Inhaled anesthetics affect every part of physiology of the lungs and their pulmonary pharmacology is complex. ▪ Volatile anesthetics produce bronchodilation through decreases in cytoplasmic ionized calcium…
Inhaled Anesthetics: Mechanisms of Action
Key Points ▪ Anesthesia consists of separable and independent components, each of which involves distinct, but possibly overlapping, mechanisms at different sites in the central nervous system. ▪ The potencies…
Respiratory Physiology and Pathophysiology
Key Points ▪ Removal of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is determined by alveolar ventilation, not by total (minute) ventilation. ▪ Dead space ventilation can be dramatically increased in patients…
Inhaled Anesthetic Uptake, Distribution, Metabolism, and Toxicity
Key Points ▪ The alveolar anesthetic concentration (F A ) or partial pressure (P alv ) is important because it is the driving force determining anesthetic uptake into blood and…
Neuromuscular Physiology and Pharmacology
Key Points ▪ The neuromuscular junction contains the distal nerve terminal, Schwann cell, synaptic cleft, and muscle end plate, which together provide an array of receptors and substrates for drug…
Renal Anatomy, Physiology, Pharmacology, and Evaluation of Function
Key Points ▪ A molecule in the plasma must pass in succession through the endothelial fenestration, glomerular basement membrane (GBM), and epithelial slit diaphragm to cross the filtration barrier and…
Anesthesia for Pediatric Cardiac Surgery
Key Points ▪ Organ system maturation, from birth through adolescence, affects physiologic function and therefore anesthetic and surgical management and outcome. ▪ The understanding of congenital heart disease (CHD) and…
