https://medicalxpress.com/anesthesiology-news/ en-us Latest medical news and research in Anaesthesiology For something so familiar to human experience, consciousness is still a mystery. Each day, people cycle through wakefulness and sleep, from a higher level of consciousness to a lower one. What's more, some people alter their conscious experience with drugs such as psychedelics or have unconsciousness induced by anesthesia. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-psychedelics-anesthetics-mirror-image-patterns.html Wed, 09 Sep 2026 16:20:05 EDT news708186484 Facing major surgery is stressful, but for older adults, unaddressed anxiety and depression can impede physical recovery. A clinical trial led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that starting an intervention before surgery—one that combines mental health coaching with optimization of medications that may increase risks for older adults—reduces postsurgery anxiety and depression. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-clinical-trial-adding-mental-health.html Wed, 09 Sep 2026 11:00:01 EDT news708003481 Ketamine, a drug approved for medical use in 1970 as a short-acting anesthetic, including during the Vietnam War for battlefield surgery, is still a pharmacological mystery. For a long time, scientists knew that ketamine, which is highly valued for treating severe pain and treatment-resistant depression, primarily works by blocking NMDARs, major receptors in the brain. However, this didn't fully explain why ketamine provides rapid pain and depression relief while drugs with similar actions didn't. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-3d-atomic-snapshots-reveal-ketamine.html Mon, 31 Aug 2026 14:00:03 EDT news707399589 Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have found new evidence that BRAF, a protein commonly involved in cancer, plays a key role in developing, amplifying and maintaining chronic pain caused by nerve damage. BRAF inhibitors reduced pain sensitivity in preclinical models, suggesting the therapeutic potential of this approach for treating chronic nerve pain. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-preclinical-cancer-drugs-treatments-chronic.html Sat, 29 Aug 2026 08:00:06 EDT news706968270 UVA Health researchers have discovered how a form of delirium that often strikes older patients after surgery may set the stage for dementia—and identified a drug that could reverse the underlying brain changes. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-dementia-discovery-link-delirium-surgery.html Tue, 18 Aug 2026 10:20:06 EDT news706263902 Opioids can be highly effective at relieving moderate to severe pain, whether it comes from surgery, an injury or conditions such as cancer. They work by activating opioid receptors in the brain and body, which block pain signals and reduce the feeling of pain. These benefits also come with a serious downside. Opioid misuse and abuse have become a major public health problem worldwide. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-experimental-pill-nerve-pain-pathway.html Mon, 17 Aug 2026 11:40:03 EDT news706178027 Deep at the base of the brain, a tiny cluster of nerve cells serves as the body's natural pain reliever, dialing down pain signals traveling up the spinal cord. But nerve damage can flip this system into a hyperactive engine for chronic pain. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-brain-receptors-biological-chronic-pain.html Mon, 17 Aug 2026 11:00:10 EDT news705857402 Combining ketamine and psychotherapy is a safe and feasible approach with promising benefits for people experiencing chronic neuropathic pain, according to a new study by researchers at St. Michael's Hospital, the University of Toronto and York University. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-ketamine-psychotherapy-combined-approach-chronic.html Thu, 13 Aug 2026 17:00:02 EDT news705851341 During ketamine anesthesia, the brain's nerve cells fall silent—as consciousness returns, they begin to reconnect. For the first time, researchers at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) have shown that immune cells in the brain play a critical role in this process—with differences between female and male brains. The findings were published in Science Advances. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-microglia-reveal-sex-specific-brain.html Fri, 31 Jul 2026 14:00:08 EDT news704554981 Having an epidural during labor is not associated with clinically significant increased risks of harm to newborn babies, including brain injury, severe breathing problems, sepsis and death, or cerebral palsy later in childhood, according to a study published in The BMJ. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-epidurals-linked-newborns-children.html Wed, 15 Jul 2026 18:30:06 EDT news703314795 Nerve blocks—local anesthetic injections that block pain signals—are a valuable opioid-sparing technique for controlling pain after surgery. However, some patients experience temporary sharp increases in pain as the nerve block wears off. This phenomenon, often termed "rebound pain," does not result from nerve hypersensitivity to painful testing (e.g., heat, pressure, punctate pain), reports a healthy volunteer study in the August issue of Anesthesiology. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-dont-blame-block-nerve-blocks.html Tue, 14 Jul 2026 09:00:06 EDT news703140818 Researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine and Birkbeck, University of London, have identified a site where a commonly used anesthetic binds to sodium ion channels, revealing a molecular mechanism that may explain how these drugs dampen communication between neurons. Ion channels are proteins that regulate the flow of charged particles across cell membranes, enabling neurons to generate electrical signals. By reducing this signaling, inhaled anesthetics help suppress brain activity, producing unconsciousness and immobility during surgery. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-demystifying-molecular-mechanisms-general-anesthesia.html Sun, 12 Jul 2026 09:00:02 EDT news702808913 A clinical trial led by St. Michael's Hospital researchers found that using nerve blocks, an anesthesia technique to numb targeted areas of the body, significantly reduced opioid use after cardiac surgery—findings the authors say could reshape how the potentially addictive drugs are used after open-heart surgery. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-clinical-trial-strong-evidence-nerve.html Tue, 07 Jul 2026 13:20:10 EDT news702648275 A landmark clinical trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that tranexamic acid reduced transfusions across major surgeries without increasing the risk of dangerous blood clots. The trial was coordinated by the University of Manitoba (UM) and co-led by researchers at UM and The Ottawa Hospital. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-inexpensive-drug-major-surgeries-blood.html Wed, 10 Jun 2026 08:30:01 EDT news700216081 Going through surgery can take a significant toll on a patient's physical health and capabilities, especially if they are elderly. A recent study found that the effects extend far beyond mobility and pain management, as the operation may also lead to a significant loss of overall cognitive sharpness. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-major-surgery-memory-loss-older.html Mon, 01 Jun 2026 11:20:07 EDT news699529058 In the brain, specific electrical waves are associated with different states of consciousness. For instance, delta waves—also known as slow waves—are especially prevalent during deep sleep, as well as during states of unconsciousness induced by coma and general anesthesia. They are considered a "signature" of these altered states of consciousness. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-pink-noise-anesthesia-surgery.html Thu, 21 May 2026 16:40:07 EDT news698587502 Vitamin D deficiency is associated with more moderate to severe pain following breast cancer surgery and an increased consumption of opioid drugs, finds research published in the journal Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-vitamin-d-linked-pain-breast.html Tue, 19 May 2026 18:30:01 EDT news698407801 People often describe anesthesia as something that puts a patient in a "deep sleep." An anesthesiologist enters the operating room, and part of their mission is to ensure that the patient is completely unaware of what is happening around them until they wake up, often several hours later. Scientists and doctors have long debated what happens to the brain under anesthetic drugs during a surgical procedure. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-deep-anesthesia-brain-strange-state.html Wed, 13 May 2026 08:37:48 EDT news697880221 Icing a sprained ankle or sore muscle, long used to reduce pain and swelling, may in the longer run delay recovery and prolong pain, new research suggests. In a preclinical study published in Anesthesiology, McGill University researchers have found that even though cryotherapy (icing) eased pain in the short term, recovery time was more than doubled in some cases. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-cold-comfort-icing-injuries-prolong.html Tue, 12 May 2026 18:20:07 EDT news697820461 A Hiroshima University study of more than 31,000 patients found that pneumonia occurred more often after breathing tubes were removed than during ventilation, with most cases developing within a 1–2 week window after surgery. The findings suggest this under-recognized condition may be a distinct clinical entity linked to swallowing dysfunction and that early assessment and intervention, including identification of high-risk patients, may be key to prevention and improved outcomes. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-extubation-pneumonia-distinct-condition-surgery.html Thu, 07 May 2026 09:56:07 EDT news697366516 Baylor College of Medicine researchers have found that the human brain is capable of sophisticated language processing while in an unconscious state from general anesthesia. The findings, published in Nature, challenge what we know about the role of consciousness and cognition, and could open new ways of understanding memory, language and brain-computer interfaces. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-patients-lay-unconscious-anesthesia-brains.html Wed, 06 May 2026 11:40:06 EDT news697284361