General Anesthesia-Related Neurotoxicity in the Developing Brain and Current Knowledge and Practice of Physicians at Guilan Academic Hospitals

BACKGROUND: Recent articles about the topic of the anesthetic agents-related neurotoxicity have currently attracted the attention to the issue in the anesthesiology community. However, specialists in other fields should also be aware of this potential risk. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge and practice of physicians at Guilan academic hospitals regarding general anesthesia-related neurotoxicity. METHODS: Firstly, the responsible anesthesia resident explained the purpose of this work to Guilan faculty and residents and if they agreed to participate a questionnaire containing 12 items was filled via a face to face interview. RESULTS: A response rate of 100% was achieved (271 responders from 271 eligible study responders). Also, 89 (33.1%) responders were attending, 180 (66.9%) were residents, 112 (41.6%) were female, and 157 (58.4%) were male. The mean years of experience was 8.8 ± 4.82 (2 - 28 years). According to the achieved data, the majority of the precipitants did not believe in GA toxicity. CONCLUSIONS: This paper revealed that the current curriculum does not sufficiently address the anesthesia-related neurotoxicity problem. Indeed, the need for training and communication with non-anesthesia medical colleagues was highlighted.