AN OPERATION UNDER GENERAL-ANESTHESIA AS A RISK FACTOR FOR AGE-RELATED COGNITIVE DECLINE - RESULTS FROM A LARGE CROSS-SECTIONAL POPULATION STUDY

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the factor 'operation under general anesthesia' as a possible risk factor for age-related cognitive decline. DESIGN: A retrospective, population-based, cross-sectional study. SETTING: Maa stricht Aging Study (MAAS), Maastricht, The Netherlands. PARTICIPANTS: 1257 normal healthy subjects aged 24 to 86 years. Of the 1257 healthy subjects, 946 subjects appeared to have undergone at least one operat ion under general anesthesia. MEASUREMENTS: The history of an operatio n under general anesthesia, number of operations, duration of anesthes ia, cognitive performance, subjective health, and subjective memory we re measured. RESULTS: The history of an operation under general anesth esia, the number of operations, and the total duration of anesthesia s ignificantly contributed to the number of subjective health-related co mplaints but did not predict cognitive performance or memory complaint s. Subjects with a history of an operation under general anesthesia fe lt less healthy than subjects who had never undergone an operation und er general anesthesia. No interactions with age were found. CONCLUSION : The present study found no support for the notion that a history of an operation under general anesthesia is a determinant or risk factor for accelerated age-related cognitive decline.