[Circulation and anesthesia]

In this paper a survey is given on the group of risk in patients with diseases of the circulatory system under the stress of anaesthesia with special regard to arterial hypertension, chronic ischaemic heart disease, disturbances of cardiac rhythm and global heart insufficiency besides the generally acknowledged therapeutic principles for cardiological patients of risk. On the conditions of a surgical intervention the author adopts a definite attitude to the partly still contrary problems of the preoperative antihypertensive treatment and to the prophylactic therapy with glycosides. The most important diagnostic and therapeutic facts concerning the necessary interdisciplinary cooperation between internist, anaesthesist and operator in preparation and performance of an operative intervention in patients with circulatory diseases are described.