More than 3 hours and less than 3 years: Safety of anaesthetic procedures in infants less than 3 years old subected to surgery for more the 3 hours

Abstract An FDA alert in December 2016 on the safety of general anaesthesia and sedation in patients less than 3 years of age and pregnant women has raised doubts in relation to the attitude that professionals implicated in these procedures should adopt in relation to this specific group of patients. Confronted with this situation, the following medical scientific societies: Sociedad Espanola de Anestesia y Reanimacion (SEDAR), Sociedad Espanola de Cirugia Pediatrica (SECP), Sociedad Espanola de Cuidados Intensivos Pediatricos (SECIP) y Sociedad Espanola de Neonatologia (SENeo), have established a working group to analyse and clarify the safety of these techniques. In the present article we conclude that at present both general anaesthesia and profound sedation are considered safe procedures because there is no evidence of the opposite in studies with human beings. However, this ascertained safety should not obviate the problem which still needs to be followed with attention, especially in patients less than 3 years of age undergoing anaesthetic procedures for more than 3 hours or prolonged sedation in the Neonatal or Pediatric Intensive Care Units.