General Anesthetics · Pharmacology

What is the effect of an increased Cardiac Output (CO) on the rate of induction with a highly soluble inhaled anesthetic?

  1. It speeds up the rate of induction
  2. It slows the rate of induction
  3. It has no effect on induction
  4. It increases the MAC value
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Correct answer: It slows the rate of induction

Increased cardiac output raises blood flow through the lungs, which washes more anesthetic away from the alveoli. This slows the rise in alveolar partial pressure and therefore slows induction with highly soluble agents.

Difficulty: Medium Question 8 of 20

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