Anesthetic neurotoxicity: Is anesthesia toxic to the developing brain? Should I cancel my baby’s surgery?

Abstract

A 4-month-old boy with congenital sensorineural hearing loss presents for bilateral cochlear implant placement under general anesthesia. The child was born full term with no problems in the perinatal period. The mother did an Internet search for "anesthesia for children" and was shocked at what she found: Papers that claimed that anesthesia in growing children can impact cognitive development. While she was not familiar with the language of scientific reporting, she was more than proficient to determine that anesthesia in the growing neuroplastic brain could be a danger for her child (Hansen in Pediatr Anesth 25:65-72, 2015). In addition, her child was already falling behind in reaching developmental milestones due to hearing loss. The mother’s concern grew, as her child had multiple anesthetics to evaluate for hearing loss since the child’s first month of life. At the pre-surgical testing clinic, the parents asked the anesthesiologist how exposing their child to another anesthetic could affect his future development.