Sevoflurane General Anesthetic and Spatial Memory in Humans

Study of the Effect of Sevoflurane General Anesthetic on Spatial Memory in Humans

The goal of this observational study is to learn about the effect of general anesthetic on spatial memory in adults who will undergo to an elective surgery. The main question it aims to answer is:

• A surgical event under general anesthesia with sevoflurane transiently impairs spatial memory in humans and induces an increase in inflammatory cytokines.

Participants will perform a virtual maze test and plasma samples will be taken before and after surgery.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Spatial Memory Disorder
• Intervention / Treatment: Procedure: Surgery/general anesthesia

Detailed Description

Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) occurs after a surgical event under general anesthesia and is characterized by a decline in one or more cognitive functions. POCD is defined as delayed neurocognitive recovery if it takes place within the first 30 days, if it exceeds that time it is known as postoperative neurocognitive disorder. The pathogenesis of this dysfunction is not entirely clear. However, the most accepted hypothesis would be neuroinflammatory, which would take place due to the contribution of inflammatory factors typical of surgical trauma under general anesthesia, with anesthetics such as sevoflurane. Consequently, one of the areas most susceptible to this inflammatory environment would be the hippocampus, a structure responsible for learning and memory. Spatial memory is responsible for encoding and retrieving information about the environment and spatial orientation. To confirm this hypothesis, an elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy under general anesthesia with sevoflurane, plasma measurement of cytokines interleukin-1beta and tumor necrosis factor-alpha and virtual navigation tests will be performed before and after an elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy under general anesthesia with sevoflurane, in order to establish a correlation between the inflammatory component and performance in the virtual navigation test. The above will allow us to elucidate the possible occurrence of a delayed neurocognitive recovery related to spatial memory in middle-aged individuals, providing new background related to an age group that has been little studied, with a non-minor incidence (30%), where the evident concern arises for being a population exposed to activities or environments of greater risk, linked to work, sport, driving, among others. This finding will guide the doctor and the patient to decide or take the necessary safeguards when proceeding with a surgical intervention in the middle-aged population.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Estimated): 22

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Antonello Penna, MD, PhD; Phone Number: +56956766623; Email: apenna@uchile.cl
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Khaleed Etchegaray; Phone Number: +56973310929; Email: khaleed.etchegaray@gmail.com

Study Locations

• Chile
  • RM
    • Santiago, RM, Chile, 7690306
      • Recruiting
      • Centro de Investigación Cínica Avanzada (CICA), Hospital Clinico de la Universidad de Chile
      • Contact: Daniela Ponce, Ing; Phone Number: 56229789405; Email: dponcedelavega@gmail.com
    • Santiago, RM, Chile, 7690306
      • Recruiting
      • Hospital Clinico de la Universidad de Chile

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: N/A

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Adult patients bewteen 30 and 50 years old who will undergo to an elective laparoscopic surgery of cholecystectomy.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Candidate for elective laparoscopic surgery of cholecystectomy.
• Age 30 to 50 years.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Visual or hearing difficulties.
• Malignant hyperthermia.
• Being treated with centrally acting drugs, such as anxiolytics, antidepressants, antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, anticholinergics, and first-generation antihistamines.
• Present a disorder of the sphere of neuropsychiatry
• Substance abuse disorder.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Adults 30-50 years	Procedure: Surgery/general anesthesia; Adult patients between the ages of 30 and 50 who are to undergo elective surgery under general anesthesia will have their spatial memory tested and interleukin 1beta and alpha tumor necrosis measured before and after surgery.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Virtual spatial memory	Time to reach the goal	1th day after surgery

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Interleukin-1beta	Interleukin-1beta plasma concentration	1st day after surgery
Interleukin-1beta	Interleukin-1beta plasma concentration	7th day after surgery
Interleukin-1beta	Interleukin-1beta plasma concentration	30th day after surgery
Tumor necrosis factor alpha	Tumor necrosis factor alpha plasma concentration	1st day after surgery
Tumor necrosis factor alpha	Tumor necrosis factor alpha plasma concentration	7th day after surgery
Tumor necrosis factor alpha	Tumor necrosis factor alpha plasma concentration	30th day after surgery
Virtual spatial memory	Time to reach the goal	30th day after surgery
Virtual spatial memory	Time to reach the goal	7st day after surgery

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Chile
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Khaleed Etchegaray, University of Chile; Study Director: Jamileth More, PhD, University of Chile; Study Director: Antonello Penna, MD, PhD, University of Chile

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): August 14, 2023
• Primary Completion (Estimated): November 30, 2025
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 30, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 7, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 7, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): August 15, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): November 20, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 17, 2025
• Last Verified: October 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Neurologic Manifestations; Nervous System Diseases; Neurobehavioral Manifestations; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Signs and Symptoms; Memory Disorders; Anesthesia and Analgesia; Anesthesia; Surgical Procedures, Operative; Anesthesia, General
• Other Study ID Numbers: OAIC: 1328/23

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No