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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) today announced initiatives with Teleflex Inc. and TeamHealth Anesthesia to benefit the ASA Charitable Foundation during the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2015 annual meeting in San Diego. Teleflex, a leading global provider of medical devices, will host a “plinko” game with donations totaling up to $5,000. While TeamHealth, one of the nation’s largest providers of hospital-based clinical outsourcing, will host a “badge scan” promotion, donating up to $1,500.

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Anxious patients heading into surgery often receive medication to ease their fears, but a few calming words from their physicians might actually be more effective medicine. In fact, “conversational hypnosis” as the approach is known, may do a better job than pills for relaxing patients before anesthesia and surgery, suggests research being presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2015 annual meeting.

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Patients having outpatient gallbladder surgery whose experience was coordinated by a physician anesthesiologist through the Perioperative Surgical Home (PSH) model of care had shorter wait times before surgery, recovered more quickly after the procedure and were less likely to require care for complications, according to two studies presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2015 annual meeting.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) today presented Mark Neuman, M.D., Ph.D., with its 2015 Presidential Scholar Award in recognition of his outstanding career in research. Dr. Neuman is a leader in health services and outcomes research and is committed to growing anesthesiology as an academic specialty and improving clinical care.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) today announced the election of James D. Grant, M.D., M.B.A., to first vice president of the ASA during the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2015 annual meeting in San Diego.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) will sponsor the Run For The Warriors® 5K Run/Walk at 7 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 25, in San Diego. The race coincides with the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2015 annual meeting and marks the sixth consecutive year of ASA sponsorship.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), today announced the selection of Evan Kharasch, M.D., Ph.D., as new editor-in-chief of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the ASA.

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New research could ease the minds of expectant mothers who may be nervous about epidurals or spinal anesthesia for childbirth.

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American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Global Humanitarian Outreach (GHO) volunteer Megan Olejniczak, M.D., will travel to Rwanda on Monday, October 19, to participate in a teaching program at the two teaching hospitals of the National University of Rwanda in the cities of Kigali and Butare.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®) and the U.S. Pain Foundation will co-host a Twitter chat to discuss pain management options during National Pain Awareness Month on Thursday, September 24, at 1 p.m. ET using the hashtag #Pain101.

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As part of a comprehensive treatment plan, a variety of technologies offer new hope to people living with chronic pain.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) today announced the selection of DeLaine Schmitz as executive of its affiliated organization, the Anesthesia Quality Institute (AQI). Most recently, Schmitz served as director of quality for The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS).

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Recognizing the urgency and serious impact of the growing opioid abuse and addiction problem on the health of patients across the country, today as part of the American Medical Association (AMA) Task Force to Reduce Opioid Abuse, ASA joins the AMA in announcing the first of several national recommendations to address this growing epidemic.

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According to a study published in the Online First edition of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®), patients who received a novel high frequency form of spinal cord stimulation (SCS) therapy experienced significantly greater, long-term relief for both chronic back and leg pain, when compared to a traditional low frequency form of SCS therapy.

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A study published in the Online First edition of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®), found patients who were prescribed opioids to treat chronic lower back pain experienced significantly less pain relief and were more likely to abuse their medication when they had psychiatric disorders.

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It may be better for patients to resume taking their blood pressure medication sooner after surgery than previously thought. A new study published in the Online First edition of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®), found resuming angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), common medications used to treat high blood pressure, within two days after surgery decreased death rates in the first month following surgery.

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Infants undergoing some types of surgery could have better recovery if they receive regional anesthesia rather than general anesthesia, according to two studies published in the Online First edition of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®).

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Physician anesthesiologists can now choose from 36 reporting measures when participating in the ASA QCDR, the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®) Qualified Clinical Data Registry (QCDR). The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approved two new Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) measures and 16 non-PQRS measures developed by ASA and its affiliated organization, Anesthesia Quality Institute (AQI).

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More than half of all Medicare patients who have cataract surgery undergo unnecessary routine preoperative testing, despite strong evidence that these tests are usually not beneficial and increase national health care costs, reports a study published on April 16 in The New England Journal of Medicine.

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Sachin Kheterpal, M.D., M.B.A., physician anesthesiologist and associate professor at the University of Michigan, has been appointed to a team of experts that will lay the groundwork for President Barack Obama’s Precision Medicine Initiative formed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) this week.

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A select population of patients having surgery experience what is called pain catastrophizing – an irrational thought process that leads a patient to perceive pain as worse than it actually is. Antidepressant medications reduce negative mood and might change this way of thinking, but according to a study published in the April edition of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®), that may not be the case, at least for acute pain.

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According to a study published in the Online First edition of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of ASA, an overwhelming majority of physician anesthesiologists who participated in the simulation program successfully implemented their practice improvements.

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A hospital stay is not necessary for many surgical patients today, as nearly two-thirds of procedures are performed at outpatient facilities. But as with in-hospital surgeries, most outpatient procedures require anesthesia, and planning ahead can help patients have a safe and successful experience.

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There are many variables that contribute to a patient’s risk of chronic pain after surgery; however, until recently, physicians had no way to systematically identify those variables prior to surgery.

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While opioids are a widely used treatment for pain, patients who take them on a regular basis can become tolerant, requiring a higher dose for continued pain relief.

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Freedom from disability is one of the most important patient-centered outcomes after surgery, but there is currently no validated instrument to measure postoperative disability.

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Epidural steroid injections are commonly used to treat pain; however, they can in rare situations produce life-threatening neurological injuries such as stroke and paralysis.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA®) announced that on November 18, 2014, it filed suit against the medical beverage company, BevMD, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division.

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The “July Effect” – when newly trained physicians begin their residency at teaching hospitals, potentially increasing the risk of medical errors – doesn’t appear to lengthen surgeries during that month, according to a study presented at the American Society of Anesthesiologists® PRACTICE MANAGEMENT 2015 meeting.

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New research is challenging what many obstetricians and physician anesthesiologists believe is the best way to position women during labor. According to a study published in the February issue of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®), the traditional practice of positioning women on their side, with hips tilted at 15 degrees, during labor does not effectively reduce compression of the inferior vena cava, a large vein located near the abdominal area that returns blood to the heart, as previously thought. In fact, not until the degree of tilt reached 30 degrees did blood flow only partially increase in patients, the study found.

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Body temperature decreases during the first hour of surgery, even when patients are actively warmed with forced air, reports a new study published in the February issue of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®). Furthermore, patients who experience the most hypothermia are more likely to require blood transfusions.

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For the first time since the 1970s, researchers are on the verge of developing a new class of anesthetics. According to a study published in the February issue of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®), a new approach to identifying compounds may lead to the next generation of anesthetics.

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Despite the variety of effective treatments, and physicians who specialize in treating pain, women often suffer unnecessarily from conditions ranging from backaches to pain after cancer surgery, and also treat their pain with medications that may be ineffective and possibly harmful, according to a review of research related to women and pain by the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®).

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Surgery and anesthesia are safer than ever, but most patients don’t know about the steps they can and should take to make their experience safer and more comfortable.

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Two studies published in the January issue of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®), shed new light on the prevalence of transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI) and transfusion-associated circulatory overload (TACO), the number one and two leading causes of blood transfusion-related deaths in the United States.

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The Perioperative Surgical Home (PSH) model consistently and significantly improves quality of care for patients and reduces health care costs, reports a first-of-its-kind, large-scale literature review of the PSH in the United States and abroad. The review, published online this month in Milbank Quarterly, provides further evidence to support the benefits, and encourage the adoption, of the PSH model.

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The number of pregnant women who abuse or are dependent on opioids (narcotics) jumped 127 percent in 14 years, leading to an increased risk of maternal death and stillbirth among other serious problems, according to a review of more than 57 million American women admitted for delivery. The results were published in the December issue of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®).

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Following a conditioning, nutritional, and relaxation program before surgery is more helpful than waiting until after surgery to rehabilitate, suggests a new study. Colorectal cancer patients who participated in a “prehabilitation” program before surgery recovered more quickly than those who only did traditional rehabilitation afterward, according to research published in the November issue of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®).

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA®) today installed J.P. Abenstein, M.S.E.E., M.D., as its president during the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA®) announced today the election of Jeffrey S. Plagenhoef, M.D., to first vice president of the ASA Executive Committee during the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting.

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Pregnant women with low vitamin D levels experience an increased amount of pain during labor, according to a study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting. Vitamin D deficiency has long been associated with depression and pain, but this is the first study to demonstrate its association with increased consumption of pain medication during childbirth.

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Women seeking pain relief during childbirth should be comforted to know that epidural and spinal anesthesia are extremely safe, suggests a study of more than 80,000 women that reviewed anesthesia complications during obstetrical care. Data on anesthesia adverse events collected through the Anesthesia Quality Institute’s (AQI) National Anesthesia Clinical Outcomes Registry (NACOR) are being presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting.

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Knee replacement patients go home sooner, are highly satisfied and incur less cost when a physician anesthesiologist coordinates care, suggests research presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting.

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Ethnicity may play a role in the occurrence of breathing problems during and after surgery, suggests preliminary results from a new study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting.

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A new study shows that pain severity among post-surgical patients has decreased by 24 percent since 2003. The study, presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting, shows vast improvements in the field of pain management for surgical patients.

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Researchers are one step closer to confirming what people in New Orleans have known for decades: Jazz is good for you. Patients undergoing elective hysterectomies who listened to jazz music during their recovery experienced significantly lower heart rates, suggests a study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting.

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Imagine no tears during infant vaccines and no fear of the needle for those old enough to know what’s coming. Such painless injections could be possible with a device that applies pressure and vibration while the needle is inserted in the skin, according to a study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014 annual meeting.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA®) today presented John Neeld, M.D., with its 2013 Distinguished Service Award in recognition of his contributions to dramatically advance the safety of anesthesia. The award is the highest honor ASA bestows and is presented annually to a member who has transformed the specialty of anesthesiology.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA®) today presented Henrik Kehlet, M.D., Ph.D., with its 2014 Excellence in Research Award in recognition of his outstanding contributions to research which have had an important impact on anesthesiology as a medical specialty. Dr. Kehlet is known for his research and writing in surgical pathophysiology, surgical stress response and the transition from acute to chronic pain, among other topics.

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The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA®) today presented Rebecca Aslakson, M.D., Ph.D., with its 2014 Presidential Scholar Award in recognition of her outstanding career in research. Dr. Aslakson has successfully erased boundaries, aligned multiple disciplines and demonstrated the leadership role that physician anesthesiologists can take to impact patients, families and other providers within and beyond the perioperative experience.