Expert: Ronald Levy, M.D. - 11/24/2006

Question
Some patients are prone to suffering adverse reactions from anaesthesia...do u know of any drugs that precipitate reactions n how they work.

Answer
Nobody is prone to anesthestic reactions. There are several situations where certain drugs are not appropriate for a particular patient but we usually know this in advance and don't use those drugs. The only cases where I can think that an unsuspected reaction happens from anesthesia are:

1) Giving succinylcholine to a patient who has a deficiency in the enzyme to metabolize it.

or

2) giving a triggering agent to a person susceptible to malignant hyperthermia.

Beyond that, any person is as likely to have an adverse reaction as anyone else. If there is a specific case that you are worried about, write back and I can be more detailed in my answer.

Hope this helps,

Ronald Levy, MD
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology
UTMB-Galveston