Der Anaesthesist
-
In order to develop a sensitive and economically reasonable preoperative screening program capable of identifying perioperative risk factors, we performed a prospective study on patients scheduled for elective urological surgery. According to age, 379 patients were assigned to six groups. After the history and physical examination had been completed the attending anesthesiologist classified the patient's anesthetic risk according to ASA criteria. ⋯ An influence of patient age on the frequency of pathological screening results and perioperative complications could be shown. Laboratory tests, chest X-rays and additional diagnostic procedures should be restricted to patients with pathological results or physiological examination. Our results underline once more the importance of a carefully taken history, a meticulous physical examination and the preoperative performance of an ECG for patients of every age scheduled for anesthesia and surgery.
-
The activity of the anesthesiologist is centered upon the respiratory organ function; therefore, the question of how the fundamental knowledge of gas exchange was gained seems justified. During the 18th century, the elegant but incorrect phlogiston theory (G. E. ⋯ He named respirable gas oxygen and explained the composition of water. In refuting the phlogiston theory, he established modern chemistry. His fate was sealed during the French revolution: in 1794 he was executed as a consequence of his activities as a farmer.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)