Anesthetics for children could potentially interfere with brain development.
Let's Talk About That Scary Anesthesia Stuff
burrowed deep into the developing brains of mice, a common general anesthetic called isoflurane has been found to interfere with the growth of neurons. and it ain't good news, y'all.
That's right, folks, hundreds of thousands of kiddos in the United States undergo surgeries every year with this stuff, and concerns have been raised. So much so, that in April 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) slapped a warning on it for use in developing babies and pregnant women during their third trimester.
What's the big deal? Well, let's dig in.
Isoflurane (first approved for use in the U.S. in 1979, btw) is regularly used in children and is generally considered safe and effective. But a recent study by a team at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine has found that the anesthetic significantly affects the dentate gyrus, a part of the hippocampus crucial for learning and memory formation.
The team exposed 15-day-old mice to 4-hour doses of isoflurane (equivalent to what's used in children) and recorded their hippocampus development. Turns out, the dentate gyrus granule cells (basically a bunch of brainy branches) were almost twice the length of those in the untreated control mice. Not good, folks, not good.
But wait, there's more. The grainy cells also saw a reduction in the number of mature dendritic spines (the structures that house synapses). When put through their paces with tests for object-place recognition and a Y-maze, the mice given isoflurane performed significantly worse. Ouch.
So, what's going on, you ask? Well, the team found that a protein called mTOR might be involved, a protein known to be linked to other neurodevelopmental disorders like autism and schizophrenia. In a preliminary trial, rapamycin, a compound that suppresses the immune system and inhibits the mTOR pathway, was given alongside the anesthetic, and it prevented the negative cognitive effects and developmental changes in the brain.
Long story short, general anesthesia ain't all fun and games for developing brains. More research will no doubt follow, so keep your eyes peeled. In the meantime, it's probably a good idea to chat with your pediatrician if your little one needs to undergo surgery. After all, better safe than sorry, right?
Wanna Learn More About Anesthesia and the Brain?
Isoflurane's impact on the brain could stretch far and wide, particularly when it comes to neurodevelopment and cognitive function. While specific studies on isoflurane are limited, general research suggests that prolonged or repeated exposure to general anesthetics can throw a monkey wrench in the normal development of brain regions like the hippocampus, leading to issues like cell death, impaired neurogenesis, and disruptions in mTOR signaling. Alterations in mTOR signaling could potentially modulate the effects of isoflurane on neurodevelopment, as changes in this pathway could influence cell survival and neurogenesis in response to anesthetic exposure. So, yeah, it's a jumbled mess in there, but more research is needed to fully understand the specific mechanisms at play. Stay tuned, folks, this is just the beginning.
Sources:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3631502/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5761914/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6063824/
- The study conducted by the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine suggests that Pfizer's anesthetic, isoflurane, may potentially block normal neurodevelopment and cognitive function, particularly in developing babies and children.
- In light of recent findings, neuroscientists are questioning the long-term effects of anesthetics like isoflurane on health-and-wellness, specifically on medical-conditions related to the brain, such as learning disabilities and neurodevelopmental disorders.
- Based on the ongoing research, discussions with healthcare providers about anesthesia and potential risks are crucial, especially when it comes to scheduling surgeries for children, as the implications for their future health may be significant.
