Introduction of new monitors into clinical anesthesia

There are an increasing number of monitors being developed to measure physiological parameters during the perioperative period. This review provides an overview of some of these new monitors developed for use in clinical anesthesia and outlines the potential advantages of each device. Pitfalls concerning the introduction of additional monitoring devices and the research gaps for introducing these monitors into clinical practice are discussed.

Many novel monitoring technologies have been developed, with invasive and noninvasive cardiac output monitoring devices and advanced display technologies being especially prominent. Most of the published literature focuses on monitor efficacy, whereas issues of technology integration and acceptability are given less emphasis. Research on novel display technologies is not integrated with the monitor development, nor is the display of new information considered during the development of new monitors.

More research is needed on how to integrate the newly developed monitors into the clinical context to assist information-overloaded anesthesiologists. This is essential to achieve the potential benefit of new monitoring devices.