general anesthetic

medicine

Also known as: general anesthesia

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June 29, 2026

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General anesthesia is a medicine that causes a loss of consciousness and sensation throughout the entire body, typically for surgical procedures. It can be administered through inhalation or direct injection. The process is divided into stages, starting with loss of consciousness and progressing to full surgical anesthesia, with a final stage indicating potential collapse of vital functions.12

The history of anesthesia includes early experiments with gases like nitrous oxide and vapors from liquids such as ether and chloroform. William Morton is credited with the first successful public demonstration of ether as a general anesthetic in 1846. Modern anesthetics are administered with greater control, often combined with other drugs to relax muscles and maintain breathing. While effective, anesthetics are potent substances requiring careful monitoring due to potential risks.342

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anesthetic
General anesthetics
General anesthetics induce anesthesia throughout the body and can be administered either by inhalation or by direct injection into the bloodstream. The relationship between the amount of general anesthetic administered and the depression of the brain’s sensory responsiveness is arbitrarily, but usefully, divided…
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General anesthetics induce anesthesia throughout the body and can be administered either by inhalation or by direct injection into the bloodstream. The relationship between the amount of general anesthetic administered and the depression of the brain’s sensory responsiveness is arbitrarily, but usefully, divided…
Read More

anesthetic
General anesthesia involves loss of consciousness, usually for the purpose of relieving the pain of surgery. Local anesthesia involves loss of sensation in one area of the body by the blockage of conduction in nerves.
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General anesthesia involves loss of consciousness, usually for the purpose of relieving the pain of surgery. Local anesthesia involves loss of sensation in one area of the body by the blockage of conduction in nerves.
Read More