Anaesthetic or "Antiaesthetic" or "Antaesthetic"? Correspondence From Andrew Buchanan, MD, to James Simpson, MD, Concerning a Name for the Agents Producing Insensibility (original) (raw)
2018, Journal of Anesthesia History
applied the word anaesthesia to the state of narcotism and insensibility produced by the inhaled vapors of sulfuric ether and chloroform, along with the word anaesthetic as an adjective to denote that state and as a generic term for agents capable of inducing the state of insensibility. In March 1848, Andrew Buchanan, MD, of Glasgow, Scotland, penned a letter to Simpson to suggest a more semantically precise word, the spelling of which is not clear in Buchanan's letter. We do not know whether Simpson replied to Buchanan. Simpson continued using the words anaesthesia and anaesthetic in his publications.
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A brief history of anaesthesia
2020
According to the definition of the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), pain is defined as: "Unpleasant subjective feeling and emotional experience associated with current or potential tissue damage of a particular localisation", which, as such, poses a challenge for epidemiological research to determine its frequency and prevalence. We have all heard the motto that surgery has experienced its unprecedented development on the wings of anaesthesia. This is most certainly the case, since it is precisely the pain that prevents any invasive procedure on the human body, hence the very elimination of pain has opened up the way for the application and development of surgery. For this reason, the skill and now the science of anaesthesia are epochal civilizational achievements, which is why it is worth remembering the attempts and successes of its application. The very beginning of mankind cannot be imagined without the humans facing some sort of pain. As long ag...
Earliest English Definitions of Anaisthesia and Anaesthesia
Anesthesiology, 2017
The earliest identified English definition of the word anaisthesia was discovered in the first edition (1684) of A Physical Dictionary, an English translation of Steven Blankaart’s medical dictionary, Lexicon Medicum Graeco-Latinum. This definition was almost certainly the source of the definition of anaesthesia which appeared in Dictionarium Anglo-Britannicum (1708), a general-purpose English dictionary compiled by the lexicographer John Kersey. The words anaisthesia and anaesthesia have not been identified in English medical or surgical publications that antedate the earliest English dictionaries in which they are known to have been defined.
Indian Journal of Clinical Anaesthesia (IJCA) publishes definitive, peer-reviewed articles devoted to the clinical practice of anaesthesia. IJCA publishes a wide range of articles in the discipline of anaesthesiology including basic science, translational medicine, education, and clinical research to create a platform for the authors to make their contribution towards the field without restrictions/barriers of subscription and language. IJCA addresses all aspects of anaesthesia practice, including anaesthetic administration, pharmacokinetics, preoperative and postoperative considerations, coexisting disease and other complicating factors, cost issues, and similar concerns anaesthesiologists contend with daily. Exceptionally high standards of presentation and accuracy are maintained. This Journal is an Open Access journal and aims to publish research articles, reviews, case studies, commentaries, short communications, and letters to the editor on various aspects of anaesthesiology and perioperative medicine and making them freely available worldwide.
PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES SJIF Impact Factor: 7.187 THE HISTORY OF ANAESTHESIA
Of all milestones and achievements in medicine, conquering pain must be one of the very few that has potentially affected every human being in the world. It was in 1846 that one of mankind's greatest fears, the pain of surgery, was eliminated. Anesthesia is one of the most important discoveries in the history of medicine and has completely revolutionized the quality of healthcare that patients can receive. In fact, it's almost impossible to imagine healthcare without the application of anesthesia.Today every single person benefits from painless surgeries and medical procedures, thanks to the remarkable discoveries in the field of anesthesia dating all the way back to 4000 BCE. Although the chemicals used as an anesthetic have significantly changed, many of the modern applications such as nitrous oxide and intravenous anesthetic are a result of discoveries in the 1600s and 1700s. [1] Now patients have several anesthetic options, from gas to IV, accommodating any kind of procedure they require. Anesthetic application is one of the most valuable components of modern healthcare and continues to be one of the leading interests in the medical field.Despite their necessity in modern medicine, scientists aren't sure exactly how anesthetics work. The best theory suggests that they dissolve some of the fat present in brain cells, changing the cells' activity. But, the precise mechanisms remain unknown. For now, next time you find yourself under the knife, just be happy they do. [2]
How do general anaesthetics work?
Naturwissenschaften, 2001
Almost a century ago, Meyer and Overton discovered a linear relationship between the potency of anaesthetic agents to induce general anaesthesia and their ability to accumulate in olive oil. Similar correlations between anaesthetic potency and lipid solubility were later reported from investigations on various experimental model systems. However, exceptions to the Meyer-Overton correlation exist in all these systems, indicating that lipid solubility is an important, but not the sole determinant of anaesthetic action. In the mammalian central nervous system, most general anaesthetics act at multiple molecular sites. It seems likely that not all of these effects are involved in anaesthesia. GABA A-and NMDAreceptor/ion channels have already been identified as relevant targets. However, further mechanisms, such as a blockade of Na + channels and an activation of K + channels, also come into play. A comparison of different anaesthetics seems to show that each compound has its own spectrum of molecular actions and thus shows specific, fingerprint-like effects on different levels of neuronal activity. This may explain why there is no known compound that specifically antagonises general anaesthesia. General anaesthesia is a multidimensional phenomenon. Unconsciousness, amnesia, analgesia, loss of sensory processing and the depression of spinal motor reflexes are important components. It was not realised until very recently that different molecular mechanisms might underlie these different components. These findings challenge traditional views, such as the assumption that one anaesthetic can be freely replaced by another. Changing concepts in anaesthesiology In 1846, ether anaesthesia was introduced in surgery by the dentist William W. Morton at the University Hospital in Boston. In the presence of a sceptical audience, he demonstrated how surgical interventions could be performed in the absence of consciousness, pain sensation and painful stimuli-induced movements. From that day, it took only a few years for this method to become standard all over the world (Table 1). Morton's technique enabled the rapid development of modern surgery and rates as one of the most-important discoveries in medical science. Nowadays, more than 17 million patients in the United States undergo general anaesthesia annually. In the nineteenth century, general anaesthesia was induced by nitrous oxide (laughing gas), ether or chloroform. In Fig. 1A, chemical structures of some currently used anaesthetics are shown. What is general anaesthesia? The Greek word αναισθησια can be translated by "insensitiveness".
Annually, millions of surgeries are carried out worldwide under general anesthesia. Patients undergoing elective or emergency procedures may have important comorbidities affecting significant functions such as cardiovascular, neurologic, and metabolic. Physicochemical and pharmacological properties differ between anesthetic drugs. Different molecular reactions within the human body are triggered by surgery and anesthesia. Cellular protective mechanisms against any kind of insult may be either enhanced or attenuated under general anesthesia. An extensive literature supporting neurotoxic effects of anesthetic drugs has been published in animal models including nonhuman primates, whereas human data are limited. Surgery and anesthesia exposure may be related to a higher incidence of neurological dysfunction mostly in extreme age patients (children and older patients). Postoperative cognitive dysfunction, delirium, and progression of previously diagnosed neurodegenerative disorders are some of the unsatisfactory clinical outcomes. Apoptosis has been described as a common mechanism triggered by intracellular reactions after anesthesia exposure. Nevertheless, some anesthetics may inhibit these pathways limiting cellular injury. Some anesthetics are associated with a protective effect as a result of enzymatic modulation and activation of antiapoptotic proteins.
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