The Mode of Action of Anaesthetics

The object of this book is to reveal how anesthetics produce their characteristic action in man, since it is believed that a thorough knowledge of the mode of action of a drug ought, inevitably, to result in its intelligent use. This volume contains four sections, each section being divided into chapters. Section one deals with narcotics, section two with anesthetics, section three with the correlation of the level of anesthetic depression of the nervous system with anesthetic sleep, loss of sensation, and loss of muscle movement and tone, and section four with metabolism during anesthesia and the side actions of anesthetics. The author includes his own speculations and conclusions. An adequate bibliography at the close of each chapter makes this a valuable reference book. Apparently, this volume appeared before Brodie's report concerning the slow rate of metabolism of thiopental sodium due to its prolonged storage in fatty tissues of the