Spring 2011 has been marked with numerous studies on the effects of anesthesia in children. Here are 10 recent findings about the effects of anesthesia on pediatric patients, according to studies from various journals.
1. Anesthesia poses little to no risk of death in healthy children. There is little or no risk of death related to anesthesia in healthy children, according to a study conducted at Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, and published in the June 2011 issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia. The researchers analyzed 101,885 anesthesia procedures in 56,000 children undergoing surgery at Children's Hospital from 2003-2008.
The study identified deaths within 24 hours and 30 days after anesthesia, and a panel of anesthesiologists judged whether each death was related to anesthesia. Ten deaths were considered to be related to anesthesia, but all the children who died had heart disease or other serious medical conditions.
2. Anesthetic exposure in children could increase risk of ADHD. Infants and very young children who are exposed to anesthesia may experience higher rates of learning disabilities and cognitive difficulties than children who are not, according to research presented during the SmartTots: Pediatric Anesthesia Neurotoxicity panel at the International Anesthesia Research Society annual meeting in Vancouver.
Randall Flick, MD, MPH, associate professor of anesthesiology and pediatrics at the Mayo Clinic, presented findings from a recent study to the Mayo Clinic, which concluded that multiple exposures to anesthesia before the age of two are a "significant risk factor" for the development of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
3. Anesthetics cause brain damage in baby animals. Research from the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, suggests that commonly used anesthetics could cause brain damage in babies. The researchers, led by anesthetist Andrew Davidson, MD, cited studies on five-day-old monkeys that were given ketamine, a commonly-used hospital anesthetic. The drug caused some of the monkeys' brain cells to die, and when they were assessed at two and three years of age, the monkeys had significant learning deficits.
Dr. Davidson said studies were underway to examine whether the same results occurred in human infants. He said there was no proof of the same problem in humans yet, but physicians are considering using ketamine less often on children and reconsidering minor surgical procedures in babies because of the anesthetic risk.
4. Brief anesthetic exposure in infancy does not affect test scores in adolescence. Researchers found no evidence that a single, relatively brief anesthetic exposure connected to hernia repair in infancy reduced academic performance during adolescence, according to a report published in Anesthesiology.
The study used Danish birth cohorts from 1986-1990 and compared the academic performance of all children who had undergone inguinal hernia repair in infancy to a randomly selected, age-matched population sample. The researchers found nothing suggesting that the anesthetic exposure related to hernia repair reduced academic performance at 15 or 16 years old.
5. Half of pediatric patient parents do not understand risks and benefits of anesthesia. Disclosure of anesthesia information to parents of pediatric patients is often incomplete, and parents' recall of information is poor, according to a study published in Anesthesia & Analgesia. The study, led by Alan R. Tait, PhD, of the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Michigan, recruited parents of children undergoing a variety of elective surgical procedures.
While the majority (96.2 percent) recalled receiving information about their child's anesthesia administration, only 51.1 percent remembered receiving information about the risks of anesthesia and 42.2 percent recalled how side effects would be managed. Fifty percent of parents had no recall of the risks of anesthesia, and 55.7 percent had no recall of the benefits.
Related Articles on Anesthesia:
Study: Anesthesia Poses Little to No Risk of Death in Healthy Children
Anesthetic Exposure in Young Children Could Increase Risk of ADHD
Anesthesia & Analgesia Debuts Mobile and CME Sites
1. Anesthesia poses little to no risk of death in healthy children. There is little or no risk of death related to anesthesia in healthy children, according to a study conducted at Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, and published in the June 2011 issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia. The researchers analyzed 101,885 anesthesia procedures in 56,000 children undergoing surgery at Children's Hospital from 2003-2008.
The study identified deaths within 24 hours and 30 days after anesthesia, and a panel of anesthesiologists judged whether each death was related to anesthesia. Ten deaths were considered to be related to anesthesia, but all the children who died had heart disease or other serious medical conditions.
2. Anesthetic exposure in children could increase risk of ADHD. Infants and very young children who are exposed to anesthesia may experience higher rates of learning disabilities and cognitive difficulties than children who are not, according to research presented during the SmartTots: Pediatric Anesthesia Neurotoxicity panel at the International Anesthesia Research Society annual meeting in Vancouver.
Randall Flick, MD, MPH, associate professor of anesthesiology and pediatrics at the Mayo Clinic, presented findings from a recent study to the Mayo Clinic, which concluded that multiple exposures to anesthesia before the age of two are a "significant risk factor" for the development of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
3. Anesthetics cause brain damage in baby animals. Research from the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, suggests that commonly used anesthetics could cause brain damage in babies. The researchers, led by anesthetist Andrew Davidson, MD, cited studies on five-day-old monkeys that were given ketamine, a commonly-used hospital anesthetic. The drug caused some of the monkeys' brain cells to die, and when they were assessed at two and three years of age, the monkeys had significant learning deficits.
Dr. Davidson said studies were underway to examine whether the same results occurred in human infants. He said there was no proof of the same problem in humans yet, but physicians are considering using ketamine less often on children and reconsidering minor surgical procedures in babies because of the anesthetic risk.
4. Brief anesthetic exposure in infancy does not affect test scores in adolescence. Researchers found no evidence that a single, relatively brief anesthetic exposure connected to hernia repair in infancy reduced academic performance during adolescence, according to a report published in Anesthesiology.
The study used Danish birth cohorts from 1986-1990 and compared the academic performance of all children who had undergone inguinal hernia repair in infancy to a randomly selected, age-matched population sample. The researchers found nothing suggesting that the anesthetic exposure related to hernia repair reduced academic performance at 15 or 16 years old.
5. Half of pediatric patient parents do not understand risks and benefits of anesthesia. Disclosure of anesthesia information to parents of pediatric patients is often incomplete, and parents' recall of information is poor, according to a study published in Anesthesia & Analgesia. The study, led by Alan R. Tait, PhD, of the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Michigan, recruited parents of children undergoing a variety of elective surgical procedures.
While the majority (96.2 percent) recalled receiving information about their child's anesthesia administration, only 51.1 percent remembered receiving information about the risks of anesthesia and 42.2 percent recalled how side effects would be managed. Fifty percent of parents had no recall of the risks of anesthesia, and 55.7 percent had no recall of the benefits.
Related Articles on Anesthesia:
Study: Anesthesia Poses Little to No Risk of Death in Healthy Children
Anesthetic Exposure in Young Children Could Increase Risk of ADHD
Anesthesia & Analgesia Debuts Mobile and CME Sites