Surgical anesthesia in young children linked to effects on IQ, brain structure

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-06/cchm-sai060315.php

Public Release: 8-Jun-2015
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center

Children who received general anesthesia for surgery before age 4 had diminished language comprehension, lower IQ and decreased gray matter density in posterior regions of their brain, according to a new study in the journal Pediatrics.

•••••

The authors stress that average test scores for all 106 children in the study were within population norms, regardless of surgical history. Still, compared with children who had not undergone surgery, children exposed to anesthesia scored significantly lower in listening comprehension and performance IQ. Researchers also report that decreased language and IQ scores were associated with lower gray matter density in the occipital cortex and cerebellum of the brain.

•••••

Loepke also stressed that researchers at Cincinnati Children's are actively looking for alternative anesthetic techniques in their ongoing laboratory studies. Drugs are being tested that show potential for lessening the harmful effects of anesthetics in laboratory rats and mice, and this research is ongoing. Additionally, the medical center is participating in an international clinical trial to test an alternative anesthetic regimen in young children undergoing urological procedures.