Anesthesia and Alzheimer's Most people are groggy when they wake up from general anesthesia - no surprise there. But what may surprise you is that some general anesthetics may increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease and other cognitive impairment, particularly for older adults. As far back as the 1950s, medical professionals have suspected a strong link between surgery and cognitive impairment. And though anesthesia was on the list of possible culprits, that cause-effect relationship was never proven conclusively. New lab research (some involving test tubes, some involving animals) directly connect anesthesia with brain cell troubles. For one thing, cell birth and growth rates are slowed down, and that seems to impact memory. Also, there seems to be a link between anesthesia and the way beta amyloid proteins clump together. And that type of protein clump is major indicator of Alzheimer's disease. The biggest problems seem to occur when inhaled anesthetics are given over extended periods (such as a long surgery). The most dangerous anesthetic - at least as far as your brain power is concerned - seems to be halothane, which may set off protein clumping in as little as six hours. Halothane is used widely in Asia and Africa, and less frequently in the U.S. and Europe. The safest option seems to be an intravenous drug (called thiopental), which doesn't seem to have any impact on those beta amyloid proteins. | 
