Medications

EU bans cough syrup chemical over severe allergies

Cough medicines containing the chemical pholcodine should be banned due to the risk of potentially deadly allergic reactions in people under general anaesthetic, the European Union's drug regulator said Friday.

Surgery

What we learned after 5,000 non-surgical rhinoplasties

As patients continue to seek non-invasive treatments across the cosmetic spectrum, "liquid rhinoplasty" is emerging as the non-surgical alternative to the traditional nose job. Using dermal fillers to change the appearance ...

Surgery

Remove false teeth before general anesthetic, doctors warn

False teeth need to be taken out before a general anaesthetic, doctors warn in the journal BMJ Case Reports after a 72 year old's dentures got stuck in his throat during surgery to remove a harmless lump in his abdominal ...

Surgery

Anesthesia works in Antarctica

New research presented at this year's Euroanaesthesia congress (the annual meeting of the European Society of Anaesthesiology) in Vienna, Austria (1-3 June) shows that commonly used anaesthetic drugs still work, even after ...

Neuroscience

How can doctors tell if you wake up during surgery?

Waking up during surgery – it's terrifying to think about. But it does happen. There is evidence that around 5 per cent of people may experience so-called anaesthesia awareness at some point on the operating table, though ...

Medical research

Test to save patients from invasive open biopsies

University of Queensland researchers are developing diagnostic tests for a genetic condition which can cause the body to fatally overheat while under a general anaesthetic.

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Anesthetic

An anesthetic (or anaesthetic, see spelling differences) is a drug that causes anesthesia—reversible loss of sensation. They contrast with analgesics (painkillers), which relieve pain without eliminating sensation. These drugs are generally administered to facilitate surgery. A wide variety of drugs are used in modern anesthetic practice. Many are rarely used outside of anesthesia, although others are used commonly by all disciplines. Anesthetics are categorized into two classes: general anesthetics, which cause a reversible loss of consciousness, and local anesthetics, which cause a reversible loss of sensation for a limited region of the body while maintaining consciousness. Combinations of anesthetics are sometimes used for their synergistic and additive therapeutic effects. Adverse effects, however, may also be increased.

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