Abstract
A few decades ago, the quality of anesthesia for elderly patients and patients with severe diseases was not good and anesthetic techniques were not satisfactory; however, many problems have been solved by the development of intravenous anesthetics and ultrasound devices. Target-controlled infusion systems, replacing conventional infusion methods such as dose per time, have enabled accurate adjustment of anesthesia depth leading to suitable anesthesia conditions and high-quality emergence. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) has enabled not only decision-making for surgical indications during surgery but also appropriate management for fluid therapy using real-time measurement of left ventricular volume and function. The development of ultrasound-guided nerve blocks has enabled us to avoid general anesthesia which has a risk of causing unstable hemodynamics. Dexmedetomidine, which has organ-protective effects, can improve the condition of the patient after surgery. We have a mission over the next decade to change the experience to evidence. If we accomplish this, we will be able to provide patients and surgeons the most preferable and suitable conditions for surgery. Since we believe that this is what we must do, we continue doing daily anesthetic management and research to accomplish this mission.
