Anesthesia

As more states allow people to smoke pot and eat edibles legally, more doctors say they are asking about marijuana use—and urging honesty—before surgeries or procedures because habitual users may need more anesthesia and painkillers. In one study, people who reported they used cannabis required more anesthesia than people who didn’t use it. “It’s incredibly important to disclose your cannabis use to your anesthesiologist," says Staci Gruber, director of the Marijuana…

Photo: David McNew (Getty Images)A new medical advisory suggests doctors ask patients about cannabis use prior to undergoing surgical procedures. Surgical patients are now advised to disclose weed-smoking habits to their doctors who warn of potential adverse effects when combined with anesthesia. The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA) issued the warning last week. The advisory directed anesthesiologists to ask patients about their level of cannabis use, which can cause increased pain…

Anesthesia is a modern miracle with a very long history. Aside from the convenience of not having to feel pain, it allows doctors to perform life-saving surgeries. If you’ve ever had surgery, you may recall being asked to count down from 10 and not being able to get past five or six. That unique mix of drugs administered by a doctor was anesthesia. It not only induces unconsciousness but also prevents movement. Imagine a heart surgeon trying to tinker with your arteries while you were twitching. It’s a recipe for…

WASHINGTON—The Federal Trade Commission is investigating one of the country’s largest anesthesiology providers, U.S. Anesthesia Partners, over whether it has amassed too much power in some regional markets through acquisitions, according to people familiar with the matter.USAP has 4,500 anesthesia providers in nine states, including Texas, Colorado and Florida. The company, founded in 2012 by private-equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, has grown by acquiring smaller anesthesiology groups and rolling them up…

General anesthesia is a marvelous thing, knocking us out and blocking our sense of pain in a matter of seconds before surgery.But in rare cases, some people are responsive to their surrounds under general anesthesia, yet they cannot remember what happened afterwards.  This is called 'connected consciousness', and now the largest study of its kind to date on the phenomenon suggests that it's more common than first thought, affecting 1 in 10 young adults, and women more than men.The findings highlight the need to better…