General anesthesia delays the inflammatory response and increases survival for mice with endotoxic shock.

Anesthesia is an indispensable component of any operative procedure. In this study, we demonstrate that continuous isoflurane anesthesia for 1 h after a lethal dose (20 mg/kg of body weight) of Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) results in a significant increase in survival of C57BL/6J (B6) mice in comparison with survival of nonanesthetized mice. Protection by anesthesia correlates with a delay in plasma LPS circulation, resulting in a delayed inflammatory response, particularly DNA binding activity of NF-kappaB and serum levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and IL-10. Disparate classes of anesthetic agents produce the same effects on the inflammatory response, which is also independent of the inbred mouse strain used. These results suggest that anesthesia has an important impact on the outcome from endotoxemia. Moreover, the immunomodulatory effects of anesthetics should be considered when interpreting data from experimental animal models.