PREFACE.
This little book is an attempt to present to the student and practitioner a condensed account of modern anæsthetic views and practice. In choosing a general scheme I have tried to lay emphasis upon the relation of anæsthesia to general medical science rather than upon elaborate descriptions of anæsthetic apparatus and methods which a few years hence may be superseded. I have therefore devoted the first four chapters to an account of the various forces which modify the physiology of the patient during an operation under a general anæsthetic, in so far as we at present understand them. I trust that they will prove not only a sound basis for the information given in the rest of the book but also a help towards forming a judgment upon new methods and appliances as and when they meet the attention of the reader.
In making a selection of drugs and appliances for description, I have eliminated those which do not appear to me to have any real sphere of usefulness.
The account of nitrous oxide and oxygen has been given in some detail. Both the profession and the lay public have arrived, through the experiences of the war, at a more just appreciation of the possibilities of this combination than was at all general before the year 1914. At the present day, no one who proposes to engage in anæsthetic work can afford to remain unpractised in its administration.
I have an apology to make to my women readers. Throughout the book, when speaking of the anæsthetist, I have presumed the male sex. Such phrases as “his or her” and “he or she” are tedious and inelegant, and their omission must not be taken as forgetfulness on the author’s part that women frequently make very good anæsthetists.
Professor Alexis Thomson has added to the many kindnesses I have received at his hands by writing the Introduction which immediately precedes this Preface, and I wish to express my sincere thanks to him for such a valuable addition to the book.
From Mr David Wallace, F.R.C.S.E., I have received much valuable help and guidance in anæsthetic matters. It was largely due to his kindly assistance and moral support that I was encouraged to persevere with my early attempts to use nitrous oxide and oxygen in major surgery. The hints which are given in connection with Genito-Urinary Surgery are also derived from him.
The chapters upon Local and Spinal Anæsthesia are entirely the work of Mr Wood, to whom I must express my gratitude for the admirable way in which he has done the work.
I must also thank Dr Torrance Thomson most sincerely for his useful contribution in chapter X, which constitutes a complete monograph upon Intratracheal Anæsthesia.
To Dr Wm. Guy I am indebted for the photographs which appear in the book, and I must express my sincere gratitude to him for the trouble he has taken in the matter.
Much thanks are also due to the following firms who have been kind enough to lend illustrative blocks:—Messrs Claudius Ash & Co. Ltd., G. Barth & Co., De Trey & Co., J. Gardner & Son, Allen & Hanbury’s Ltd., Meyer & Phelps, Coxeter & Son, Down Bros., Ltd., Krohne & Sesemann, and Mr J. H. Montague.
Lastly, I must express my high appreciation of the courtesy which the publishers have shown to me, and of their generosity in the matter of illustrations.
J. STUART ROSS.
October 1919.