Here are five key points:
1. The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Society of Anesthesiologists and the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia along with 16 other health organizations endorsed the statement.
2. Anesthesia, pediatric medicine and neuroscience leaders collaborated to write the consensus statement.
3. New evidence is surfacing that shows young animals exposed to anesthetics or sedatives have slowed learning ability and worse memory. Research is currently underway to test whether the same is true for young children.
4. The statement calls for more discussion before surgeries about the possible harm associated with these methods for young children.
5. As of yet, researchers do not know the extent of damage, if any, anesthetics or sedatives cause in young children.
More articles on anesthesia:
ASA named Dr. Evan Kharasch editor-in-chief of Anesthesiology: 5 quick facts
Dr. Steven Barker wins lifetime achievement award: 4 points
North Shore Medical Center honors Dr. Wilfred Lewis: 3 notes
