Anesthesia

Tom George, an anesthesiologist who served for a decade in the Michigan Legislature before an unsuccessful run as the 2010 Republican gubernatorial candidate, will return to full-time medicine in 2011, according to a report from the Kalamazoo Gazette.

Anesthesiologist Scott D. Augustine, MD, has told hospitals to stop using a device he invented during certain operations, suggesting it may pose a danger to patients, according to a New York Times report.

Fifty-one percent of academic anesthesiology chairs exhibit a high incidence or risk of burnout, according to a study published in the Dec. 2010 issue of Anesthesiology.

Current guidelines may be inadequate to prepare newer generation anesthesia workstations, which require more time for purging anesthetic gases, autoclaving or replacement of parts, as well as modifications to the gas delivery system, according to a study published in the…

Perioperative physicians are at greater risk for burnout than nurses or nurse anesthetists, according to a study published in the Dec. 2010 issue of Anesthesiology.

Statin drugs introduced to lower blood cholesterol concentrations could help reduce postoperative mortality, according to a study published in Anesthesiology.

Ibuprofen and celecoxib significantly decrease the need for rescue analgesic medication in the early post-discharge period, improving the quality of recovery and patient satisfaction following ambulatory surgery, according to a study published in the Dec. 2010 issue of Anesthesia &…

Sleep apnea is an independent risk factor for perioperative pulmonary complications, according to a study published in the Dec. 2010 issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia.

The use of techniques such as radiotherapy and radionuclides, as well as short-onset drugs, may be useful in decreasing pain flares, according to a study by Italian expert Professor Sebastiano Mercadante.

Botulinum neurotoxin type A — or Botox — may reduce responses to an inflammation-related pain stimulus when injected into the spine, following a study that showed positive effects on mice, published in the Jan. 2011 issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia.