• Anna Carnini, Maryellen Fazen Eckenhoff, and Roderic G Eckenhoff.
• Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, University of Pennsylvania Health Systems, 305 John Morgan Building, 3620 Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
• Anesthesiol Clin. 2006 Jun 1;24(2):381-405.

AbstractThe prevalence of the neurodegenerative disorders is increasing as life expectancy lengthens, and there exists concern that environmental influences may contribute to this increase. These disorders are varied in their clinical presentation, but appear to have a common biophysical initiation. At this level, it is both plausible and now proven that anesthetics can enhance aggregation of some disease-causing proteins. Although data in support of an interaction in animal models are still lacking, data from clinical studies indicate an association, which provides further cause for concern. Many opportunities exist for rapid progress at all levels on defining whether anesthetics do indeed contribute to the pathogenesis of these progressive, debilitating disorders.

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