Mexicana de Accurate assessment of recovery after anaesthesia

With the advent of modern anaesthesia, in Boston, USA in October 1846, came the introduction of a new speciality for which there was no established method of measurement of efficacy or safety. For the first time patients were deliberately made unconscious and then brought back to their normal conscious level; some died and others developed new symptoms that were short lived or long lasting. Observations were made about the recovery process and data began to be collected. Over the years this process has been refined but until recently no significant measure has been available to measure a quality in recovery for all patients. This paper will outline the formative developments in this evolution and outline the process required to measure a quality of recovery.