Integrating the Science of Consciousness and Anesthesia
Anesthesia & Analgesia September 19, 2006 DOI: 10.1213/01.ane.0000232442.69757.4a (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Legitimacy Subject documents Cognitive science Epistemology Altered state Anesthesia Mechanism biology Level of consciousness Engineering ethics Law |
| Citations | 135 |
| Key points | Proposes that the investigation of consciousness and the mechanisms of general anesthesia have begun to converge, and suggests an integrated approach to studying both. |
Abstract
The nature and mechanism of human consciousness is emerging as one of the most important scientific and philosophical questions of the 21st century. Disregarded as a subject of serious inquiry throughout most of the 20th century, it has now regained legitimacy as a scientific endeavor. The investigation of consciousness and the mechanisms of general anesthesia have begun to converge. In the present article I provide an introduction to the study of consciousness, describe the neural correlates of consciousness that may be targets of general anesthetics, and suggest an integrated approach to the science of consciousness and anesthesia.