Risk of Anesthesia
Key Points ▪ Perioperative risk is multifactorial and may occur as a result of anesthesia-, surgery-, and/or patient-specific factors. ▪ Anesthesia-related (and surgery-related) risk is typically defined as morbidity and…
Gastrointestinal Physiology and Pathophysiology
Key Points ▪ The gastrointestinal (GI) tract forms a long tube from mouth to anus and its main functions are motility, digestion, absorption, excretion, and circulation. Each component of the…
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…
Cardiac Physiology
Key Points ▪ The cardiac cycle is the sequence of electrical and mechanical events during a single heartbeat. ▪ Cardiac output is determined by the heart rate, myocardial contractility, and…
Nonopioid Pain Medications
Key Points ▪ With a better understanding of pain pathways and mechanisms, it has been recognized that ion channels play an important role in the transduction, transmission, and modulation of…
Hepatic Physiology, Pathophysiology, and Anesthetic Considerations
Key Points ▪ The liver is the largest abdominal organ and carries out a number of vital functions including metabolism and detoxification. ▪ The liver receives approximately 25% of the…
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…
Patient Simulation
Key Points ▪ Led by the discipline of anesthesiology, simulators and the use of simulation have become integral parts of many health care domains for various uses including training 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…
Sleep Medicine
Key Points ▪ Sleep is a dynamic neuronal and behavioral state that can be characterized using specific electroencephalographic, electrophysiologic, and behavioral findings. ▪ Characteristics of sleep can be quantified using…
