Tag: Anesthetic agents

Intraoperative hypotension, or low blood pressure during surgery, occurs in 5% to 99% of patients under anesthesia, depending on the definition used [1.2.4]. But **does being under anesthesia lower your blood pressure** for everyone, and why does this happen?

Lasting several hours, heart bypass surgery typically uses general anesthesia to ensure the patient is in a deep, sleep-like state throughout the procedure. The specific anesthetic plan is carefully customized by a specialist anesthesiologist to meet the patient's individual needs.

While some patients wake up within minutes, it is generally considered normal to take between one and two hours to fully regain consciousness after general anesthesia. This duration is highly dependent on individual factors and the specifics of the surgical procedure, so a two-hour wake-up from anesthesia falls within the typical recovery spectrum.

The first public demonstration of ether as a surgical anesthetic in 1846 revolutionized surgery by eliminating pain. While groundbreaking, its widespread use declined over a century due to significant dangers, revealing the crucial answer to why was ether disproved for safer alternatives.

First synthesized in 1973, propofol has become the most widely used intravenous anesthetic agent in modern medicine. Its rapid onset and short duration of action make it ideal for numerous clinical scenarios, but most notably, what is propofol most commonly used for involves its hypnotic effects for inducing and maintaining anesthesia, as well as providing sedation in critical care settings and for procedures.

Intraoperative hypotension is a common event, with some studies indicating it affects up to 88% of surgical patients [1.7.2, 1.7.3]. Understanding **what anesthetic drugs cause hypotension** is critical for anesthesiologists to maintain patient stability and prevent adverse outcomes associated with low blood pressure during surgery [1.7.1].

While most people are awake within one to two hours after surgery, the full effect of general anesthesia can linger for 24 hours or longer, depending on multiple factors. Understanding how many hours is the effect of general anesthesia requires considering the type of anesthetic used, the length of the procedure, and individual patient health.