Genetic variation of rs12918566 affects GRIN2A expression and is associated with spontaneous movement response during sevoflurane anesthesia induction

N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA) receptors mediate excitatory neurotransmission in the nervous system and are preferentially inhibited by general anesthetics such as sevoflurane. Spontaneous movement is a common complication during sevoflurane anesthesia induction and seriously affects operations. In this study, we investigated the relationship between NMDA polymorphisms and spontaneous movement during sevoflurane induction. This prospective clinical study enrolled 393 patients undergoing sevoflurane anesthesia as part of their surgical routine. In the GRIN1, GRIN2A, and GRIN2B genes, 13 polymorphisms that form a heteromeric complex as part of the NMDA receptor were selected using Haploview and genotyped using matrix‐assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry MassARRAY. Both RNAfold and Genotype‐Tissue Expression portals were used to identify gene expression profiles. Our data showed that 35.8% of subjects exhibited spontaneous movement. The GRIN2A rs12918566 polymorphism was associated with spontaneous movement during sevoflurane induction. A logistic regression analysis of additive, dominant, and recessive models indicated a significant association (odds ratio [OR] (95% confidence limit [CI]): 0.58 (0.42–0.80), p = .00086; OR (95% CI): 0.51 (0.31–0.84), p = .0075, and OR (95% CI): 0.47 (0.27–0.81), p = .0060, respectively). After false discovery rate (FDR) correction, the additive model was still significant with a P (FDR) =0.010. Bioinformatics demonstrated that the rs12918566 genomic variation affected GRIN2A expression in brain tissue. We also revealed that GRIN2A rs12918566 was significantly associated with spontaneous movement during sevoflurane induction. We believe the NMDA receptor plays an important role in regulating the anesthetic effects of sevoflurane.