The researchers identified 18,056 children, 3,850 of whom had a single general anesthesia exposure and 620 of whom had two or more general anesthesia exposures; these children were matched with 13,586 children with no history of exposure to general anesthesia. All of the children with general anesthesia had been exposed before the age of 4 years old.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. In children less than 2 years of age, there was no independent association between single or multiple general anesthesia exposure and neurodevelopmental capabilities.
2. However, a single exposure to general anesthesia between the ages of 2 and 4 years old was associated with neurodevelopmental deficits; these deficits related to communication/general knowledge and language/cognition capabilities.
3. Multiple general anesthesia exposures were not associated with greater risk than a single general anesthesia exposure.
The researchers concluded that “these findings refute the assumption that the earlier the GA exposure in children, the greater the likelihood of long-term neurocognitive risk.”
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