General anesthetics: a comparative review of pharmacodynamics

Abstract

General anesthetics, in addition to eliminating the perception of stimuli, profound physiologic effects in other systems including the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. A thorough knowledge of the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of each agents as well as an understanding of the patient's physiologic reserve will allow the anesthetist to reasonably predict the response to a given drug. The ability to forecast patient responses imparts control over an anesthetic technique which contributes to the overall safety of the procesure. This paper reviews pharmacodynamics of general anesthetic agents commonly used in dentistry