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Anesthesia
Genetic test may detect risk of rare complication from anesthesia
July 12th, 2005
A rare but potentially life- threatening inherited condition called malignant hyperthermia (MH) may strike surgical patients who receive common drugs for general anesthesia. Usually there is no outward sign of a problem before the drugs are given, but the drugs may trigger abnormal metabolic responses, such as a rapid rise in body temperature, muscle rigidity and other complications that may constitute a medical emergency. Approximately one in 10,000 persons have a susceptibility to MH; most will not know this unless they receive general anesthesia. Currently, the only test for MH susceptibility requires a muscle biopsy done at a few specialized...
Source: Science Letter (2005-07-12)
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