Anesthesia

Anaesthesia (BE) or Anesthesia (AE) is the prevention of consciousness or sensation, usually by means of chemicals known as anaesthetics (or anesthetics in the U.S.).

The first anaesthesia was administered by folk herbalism in prehistory. Opium and hemp were two of the most important herbs used. These could be administered by ingestion or the substance could be burned and the smoke inhaled.

In China Taoist medical practioners developed anaesthesia by means of acupuncture.

The anaesthetic qualities of nitrous oxide were discovered by the British chemist Sir Humphry Davy about 1800 and this gas was used in 1844 for painless tooth extraction by American dentist Horace Wells.

On March 30, 1842 in Jefferson, Georgia, Dr. Crawford Williamson Long was the first to use anaesthesia during an operation; ether was given to his wife during childbirth.

In 1847 Sir James Simpson discovered the anaesthetic use of chloroform.

Anaesthesia can be divided into

• General anaesthesia (with loss of consciousness)
• Local anaesthesia (without loss of consciousness)

External Links

• History of Anaesthesia society
• A medical student's guide to anaesthesia from a patient's perspective
• Gasnet, a comprehensive online resource on anaesthesiology
• American Society of Anaesthesiologists
• Patient's guides and more anaesthesia-related information
• Columbia Encyclopedia-Acupuncture
• Opium in Japan
• Medical Uses of Marijuana
• University of California Pain Alleviation and Anesthesia Exhibit
• The Unusual History of Ether
• Conquering surgical pain: Four men stake their claim
• A History of Anaesthesia at Harvard University