New drugs and anaesthesia

Abstract

The field of clinical anaesthesia has taken giant strides in terms of drug discovery and development. To date, the "ideal drug" does not exist—one with rapid onset of action, organ-independent metabolism, fast clearance, free from cardiorespiratory perturbations, minimal side effect profile. Recent drug innovations have focused primarily on matching previously unmet needs and identifying drawbacks of existing drugs and then altering their chemical structures to improve the safety and efficacy profile. There are currently numerous novel anaesthetic drugs at various stages of drug development.