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Related Concept Videos

Stages of General Anesthesia01:22

Stages of General Anesthesia

Various sedation levels offer significant advantages in facilitating procedural interventions for patients undergoing medical or invasive surgical procedures. These levels span from anxiolysis to general anesthesia, providing a spectrum of sedative effects to cater to specific patient needs. Anxiolysis reduces anxiety and is achieved through minimal sedation, enabling patients to remain awake and responsive while feeling more at ease during the procedure. This level can benefit minor...
General Anesthesia: Overview01:24

General Anesthesia: Overview

Anesthesia is a medical procedure that uses drugs for CNS suppression to enable painless surgeries and procedures. The selection of anesthetics is influenced by their pharmacokinetic properties, side effects, and patient characteristics. Various types of anesthesia include general, local, regional, spinal, and inhalational.
General anesthesia induces unconsciousness in the whole body, while the others target specific areas or sensations. It is administered to minimize adverse effects, maintain...
Lucid Dreaming01:10

Lucid Dreaming

Lucid dreaming is a unique state of consciousness where an individual realizes they are dreaming while still in the dream. This awareness allows them to manipulate their dream environment consciously. Researchers like Stephen LaBerge have significantly contributed to the understanding of lucid dreams, highlighting that during these dreams, certain areas of the brain, such as the prefrontal cortex, that involve self-awareness and thought evaluation show increased activity.
Studies have shown...
Inhalational Anesthetics: Overview01:20

Inhalational Anesthetics: Overview

Inhalation anesthetics are drugs that induce general anesthesia upon inhalation. They work by increasing the sensitivity of GABAA receptors or inhibiting NMDA receptors, leading to a decrease in central nervous system activity. The depth of anesthesia can be rapidly adjusted by changing the concentration of the inhaled gas. Some common examples of inhalational anesthetics include volatile liquids like isoflurane, desflurane, sevoflurane and gases like xenon and nitrous oxide. Isoflurane, a...
Parenteral Anesthetics: Overview01:24

Parenteral Anesthetics: Overview

Intravenous anesthetics are drugs administered parenterally to induce anesthesia or sedation. Propofol is a widely used agent formulated as a 1% emulsion in soybean oil, glycerol, and egg phosphatide. It induces rapid anesthesia primarily due to its rapid distribution from the bloodstream to target tissues and is metabolized in the liver. However, it can cause significant pain on injection and hypertriglyceridemia. Fospropofol, a water-based prodrug of propofol, lacks these adverse effects.
Subconsciousness and No Awareness01:15

Subconsciousness and No Awareness

The concept of subconscious awareness refers to the processing of information below the level of conscious thought, which significantly influences both behaviors and decisions. It is also known as waking subconscious awareness. This complex level of cognition operates without the direct awareness of the individual, facilitating rapid and simultaneous handling of multiple information streams.
An illustrative example of subconscious processing is its role in problem-solving. Often, individuals...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 12, 2026

Recording Brain Electromagnetic Activity During the Administration of the Gaseous Anesthetic Agents Xenon and Nitrous Oxide in Healthy Volunteers
14:52

Recording Brain Electromagnetic Activity During the Administration of the Gaseous Anesthetic Agents Xenon and Nitrous Oxide in Healthy Volunteers

Published on: January 13, 2018

Dreaming during anaesthesia: a scoping review.

Pilleriin Sikka1, Sherry Hu2, Boris D Heifets3

  • 1Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA; Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience and Philosophy, School of Bioscience, University of Skövde, Sweden; Department of Psychology, University of Turku, Finland.

British Journal of Anaesthesia
|June 10, 2026
PubMed
Summary

Dreaming during anesthesia is common and often pleasant, with recall rates varying by setting and anesthetic. Further research is needed to understand its mechanisms and potential therapeutic uses.

Keywords:
anaesthesia dreamingdisconnected consciousnessdreamsintraoperative awarenessketamineneural correlatesphenomenologypropofol

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 12, 2026

Recording Brain Electromagnetic Activity During the Administration of the Gaseous Anesthetic Agents Xenon and Nitrous Oxide in Healthy Volunteers
14:52

Recording Brain Electromagnetic Activity During the Administration of the Gaseous Anesthetic Agents Xenon and Nitrous Oxide in Healthy Volunteers

Published on: January 13, 2018

Drug-Induced Sleep Endoscopy (DISE) with Target Controlled Infusion (TCI) and Bispectral Analysis in Obstructive Sleep Apnea
07:54

Drug-Induced Sleep Endoscopy (DISE) with Target Controlled Infusion (TCI) and Bispectral Analysis in Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Published on: December 6, 2016

Area of Science:

  • Anesthesiology
  • Neuroscience
  • Psychology

Background:

  • Dreaming during anesthesia has been documented for over a century but remains poorly understood.
  • Existing evidence on anesthesia dreaming is fragmented, necessitating a comprehensive synthesis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To synthesize evidence on the frequency, phenomenology, predictors, outcomes, and neural correlates of anesthesia dreaming.
  • To identify knowledge gaps and suggest future research directions.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic search of multiple databases for studies on anesthesia dreaming.
  • Inclusion of clinical trials, observational studies, and experimental investigations.
  • Analysis of data from 157 studies involving 87,866 participants (1921-2024).

Main Results:

  • Dream recall rates varied significantly (3-8% in clinical trials, 40-80% in experimental settings).
  • Ketamine and propofol were most consistently associated with dream recall.
  • Dreams were predominantly pleasant and autobiographical; recall linked to pre-operative factors and post-emergence assessment.
  • Dream recall was not associated with intraoperative awareness; neural evidence suggests distinct signatures from unconsciousness.

Conclusions:

  • Anesthesia dreaming is common, predominantly positive, and influenced by specific anesthetics.
  • Significant knowledge gaps exist in definitions, assessment methods, mechanistic understanding, pediatric research, and outcome data.
  • Standardized approaches and investigation into potential therapeutic applications are warranted.