Toxicity of anaesthetics

Unwanted side-effects of anaesthetic drugs that occur during anaesthesia or during the post-operative recovery period are what concern anaesthesiologists and anaesthetists. Occupational risks are of concern to all health-care professionals who administer anaesthetics or who are incidentally exposed to anaesthetic gases. After regulatory requirements for marketing drugs are met, the qualitative and quantitative nature of side-effects of the drugs in the target population and the risk of incidental exposure of health-care professionals are generally well defined. However, sometimes unwanted side-effects are first detected after post-approval marketing. Numerous scientific disciplines with specialized terminology contribute to the body of knowledge about anaesthetic toxicity. Scientific inquiry spanning a range of disciplines from molecular biology to global ecology provides information essential for predicting, assessing, avoiding and treating the untoward effects of anaesthetics. Contemporary concerns with respect to side-effects of anaesthetic drugs include delayed recovery of cognitive function, addiction and tolerance, local anaesthetic cardiotoxicity and tissue toxicity, relative toxicity of enantiomeric forms of drugs, and the role of biotransformation in unwanted responses to anaesthetic drug administration.