[Development of Anaesthesia-Related Mortality and Impact On Perioperative Outcome].

Achievements in anaesthesiology form the basis for the tremendous development of surgical therapy. Reliable monitoring technology, which is scrutinized on a regular basis using checklists, is allowing anaesthesia at the borders of physiology. During the last decades, anaesthesia-related mortality has been decreasing considerably. Well-trained anaesthesiology staff, who considers patient- and procedure-specific risks in anaesthetic management, is of major importance. Furthermore, postoperative care in specialised units and intensive care wards is a key factor of improved patient outcome after surgery. In the future, unravelling the interactions of anaesthesia, surgical trauma and postoperative complications will further contribute to improved patient safety. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.