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How do inhaled anesthetics affect excitatory nerve signals in the brain?
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anesthetic
How anesthesia works.
Inhaled anesthetics function by blocking the transmission of signals across synapses within the central nervous system. Specifically, there is evidence that these agents act by blocking synapses that participate in excitatory neuronal transmission. By inhibiting these excitatory signals, inhaled anesthetics effectively suppress the brain's sensory responsiveness, contributing to the state of anesthesia.12