It is not entirely clear how a chapter on pregnancy fits into a book titled Anesthesia and Coexisting Disease . Pregnancy is not a disease, but a normal physiologic condition, usually associated with and dependent on relatively good health. For…
Unique considerations in pediatric patients When it comes to anesthetic care, children are not merely small adults. Many considerations come into play beyond underlying medical conditions: the child’s age, developmental stage (physically and psychologically), physiology, social circumstances, and family factors…
Introduction Compared to 100 years ago, people are living much longer. The US life expectancy for men in 1900 was 48 years and for women, 51 years. Currently the average life expectancy in the United States exceeds 75 years. The…
The prevalence of mental illness and substance use disorders in the United States is about 30%, so these conditions are often present in patients undergoing anesthesia and surgery. Effects of and potential drug interactions with psychotropic medications are important perioperative…
Chronic pain is a major health issue throughout the world and is an increasingly challenging preoperative issue for anesthesiologists. Throughout the 1990s, the health care system in the United States began to encourage more routine assessment of pain in patients,…
Introduction Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States, exceeded only by heart disease. The lifetime risk of developing cancer is estimated to be one in three for both men and women. The lifetime risk of…
Introduction The human immune system is traditionally divided into two pathways: innate immunity and adaptive (also known as acquired) immunity. Each is comprised of a series of unique components, all of which function to protect the host against invading microorganisms.…
Unknown illness … single infection … community spread … contagion … epidemic … pandemic. The recent year has demonstrated in full force that infectious diseases remain a major health concern. Infectious diseases jeopardize patient outcomes throughout the healthcare delivery system…
Skin diseases Skin disease can have significance for the anesthesiologist due to the skin manifestations itself, the underlying medical condition, or the potential worsening by anesthetic interventions. Examples of skin diseases in which the anesthetic implications are mainly due to…
Disease states related to erythrocytes include anemia and polycythemia. Anemia is characterized by a decrease in the red cell mass, with the main adverse effect being a decrease in the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood. Polycythemia (erythrocytosis) represents an increase in…