PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Recent high-quality outcomes research shows that anesthetic technique in nonoperating room anesthesia influences procedural performance, intraprocedural stability, and recovery. RECENT FINDINGS: In gastrointestinal endoscopy, noninvasive oxygenation strategies reduce hypoxemia, and remimazolam provides improved cardiopulmonary stability compared with propofol. Sedation depth may also affect the detection of serrated polyps. In bronchoscopy and interventional pulmonology, remimazolam and regional analgesic strategies improve respiratory and hemodynamic tolerance. In neurointerventional radiology and electrophysiology, general anesthesia does not consistently improve major outcomes and may prolong procedures or increase complications. In electroconvulsive therapy, processed electroencephalogram-guided timing and anesthetic dose reduction may reduce airway interventions while preserving effectiveness. SUMMARY: Recent evidence across a diverse selection of nonoperating room anesthesia environments demonstrates outcomes that have advanced the field and inform anesthetic decisions.
Primm et al. (2026) studied this question.