Pharmacology: Inhalation Anesthetics
UPDATED Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
How are inhaled anesthetics unique? - CORRECT ANSWER - Delivered to the lungs which
get 100% of cardiac output
Extremely rapid action of inhaled anesthetics equals - CORRECT ANSWER - 1. Fast changes
in level of anesthesia-- increase and decrease
2. Faster turnover/recovery times
3. Margin of Safety
What are the 4 factors needed for general anesthesia? - CORRECT ANSWER - Amnesia
Sedation
Muscle relaxation/immobility
Analgesia
Amnesia occurs in which areas of the brain - CORRECT ANSWER - Hippocampus,
amygdala, temporal lobe
Sedation occurs in which areas of the brain - CORRECT ANSWER - cerebral cortex,
thalamus, reticular formation
Muscle relaxation occurs - CORRECT ANSWER - in the spinal cord/supraspinal effects
Analgesia occurs where in the CNS - CORRECT ANSWER - peripheral and central receptors
,What can cause GA? (4) - CORRECT ANSWER - Inert elements (xenon)
Simple inorganic compounds (nitrous oxide)
Halogenated hydrocarbons (halothane)
Complex organic structures (barbiturates)
What is the unitary hypothesis of GA? - CORRECT ANSWER - All inhaled agents have a
common mechanism of action
What is the Myer-Overton Rule? - CORRECT ANSWER - Potency correlates with lipid
solubility
Agents bind to the lipid bilayer and make it expand
Agents disturb membrane form
Agents decrease membrane conductance
Volatile agents probably: - CORRECT ANSWER - Bind to ion channel proteins (GABA
receptors, glycine, nicotinic acetylcholine, NMDA)
Partial pressure - CORRECT ANSWER - the pressure a gas exerts--proportional to its
fractional mass
Partial pressures are: - CORRECT ANSWER - Additive!
Same partial pressure each gas would have if it alone occupied the same volume
Concentration of gas - CORRECT ANSWER - The amount of gas dissolved in a solution
, Pressure exists - CORRECT ANSWER - in the gas phase
Solubility - CORRECT ANSWER - Volume of gas/ volume of liquid
(at a standard temperature)
What does partial pressure of a gas in a solution mean? - CORRECT ANSWER - Reflects a
"force" of gas to escape out of solution--think of CO2 in a bottle of soda
It's the pressure of the gas if there were a gas phase in EQ with the solution
Gases equilibrate on - CORRECT ANSWER - PARTIAL PRESSURES
Not on concentrations
Why is fractional concentration used instead of partial pressure (P) - CORRECT ANSWER -
Convention
Ex: We could say FO2 = 21% instead of P02 = 160 mmHg
Thus, F is proportional to P
Physiologically, your body needs_________not____________ - CORRECT ANSWER -
Partial pressure
NOT fractional concentration
High altitudes FO2 - CORRECT ANSWER - At high altitudes, you will need to breath a
higher FO2 to achieve adequate tissue oxygenation
UPDATED Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
How are inhaled anesthetics unique? - CORRECT ANSWER - Delivered to the lungs which
get 100% of cardiac output
Extremely rapid action of inhaled anesthetics equals - CORRECT ANSWER - 1. Fast changes
in level of anesthesia-- increase and decrease
2. Faster turnover/recovery times
3. Margin of Safety
What are the 4 factors needed for general anesthesia? - CORRECT ANSWER - Amnesia
Sedation
Muscle relaxation/immobility
Analgesia
Amnesia occurs in which areas of the brain - CORRECT ANSWER - Hippocampus,
amygdala, temporal lobe
Sedation occurs in which areas of the brain - CORRECT ANSWER - cerebral cortex,
thalamus, reticular formation
Muscle relaxation occurs - CORRECT ANSWER - in the spinal cord/supraspinal effects
Analgesia occurs where in the CNS - CORRECT ANSWER - peripheral and central receptors
,What can cause GA? (4) - CORRECT ANSWER - Inert elements (xenon)
Simple inorganic compounds (nitrous oxide)
Halogenated hydrocarbons (halothane)
Complex organic structures (barbiturates)
What is the unitary hypothesis of GA? - CORRECT ANSWER - All inhaled agents have a
common mechanism of action
What is the Myer-Overton Rule? - CORRECT ANSWER - Potency correlates with lipid
solubility
Agents bind to the lipid bilayer and make it expand
Agents disturb membrane form
Agents decrease membrane conductance
Volatile agents probably: - CORRECT ANSWER - Bind to ion channel proteins (GABA
receptors, glycine, nicotinic acetylcholine, NMDA)
Partial pressure - CORRECT ANSWER - the pressure a gas exerts--proportional to its
fractional mass
Partial pressures are: - CORRECT ANSWER - Additive!
Same partial pressure each gas would have if it alone occupied the same volume
Concentration of gas - CORRECT ANSWER - The amount of gas dissolved in a solution
, Pressure exists - CORRECT ANSWER - in the gas phase
Solubility - CORRECT ANSWER - Volume of gas/ volume of liquid
(at a standard temperature)
What does partial pressure of a gas in a solution mean? - CORRECT ANSWER - Reflects a
"force" of gas to escape out of solution--think of CO2 in a bottle of soda
It's the pressure of the gas if there were a gas phase in EQ with the solution
Gases equilibrate on - CORRECT ANSWER - PARTIAL PRESSURES
Not on concentrations
Why is fractional concentration used instead of partial pressure (P) - CORRECT ANSWER -
Convention
Ex: We could say FO2 = 21% instead of P02 = 160 mmHg
Thus, F is proportional to P
Physiologically, your body needs_________not____________ - CORRECT ANSWER -
Partial pressure
NOT fractional concentration
High altitudes FO2 - CORRECT ANSWER - At high altitudes, you will need to breath a
higher FO2 to achieve adequate tissue oxygenation
