Read the 2024 Edition of Vital Times!
Bupivacaine Cardiotoxicity: From Observation to Evidence
The CSA Committee on the History of Anesthesia congratulates Dr. Kevin Youssefzadeh, the 2nd place winner of the 2022 CSA History of Anesthesia Essay Contest! Dr. Youssefzadeh, a CA-2 resident at UCLA, is a native Angeleno. When not at the hospital, he enjoys taking long walks with friends and family. Synthesized in 1956, bupivacaine was […]
Remembering Norm Levin
Dr. Norman Levin, M.D. died on February 9, 2022 at the age of 85. Norm was a legendary fixture in the CSA, ASA, and CMA, and he was revered by all as colleague, mentor, advisor, and friend. He served as President of the CSA from 1988-89, succeeding another illustrious leader, Dr. Thomas Joas, who also […]
ASA March Board of Directors Meeting Summary
The Board of Directors meeting began Saturday, March 5, with some opening comments from ASA President Randall M. Clark, MD, FASA. Dr. Clark spoke about ASA’s support for Ukraine and suggested that Board members consider donating to relief efforts. The European Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care recommends the International Committee of the Red Cross. […]
Fortune Favors the Prepared Mind: The First Use of IV Dantrolene to Treat Malignant Hyperthermia in an Adult Patient
The CSA Committee on the History of Anesthesia congratulates Dr. Todsaporn “Bob” Rodbumrung, the 1st place winner of the 2022 CSA History of Anesthesia Essay Contest! Dr. Rodbumrung, a CA-3 resident at Stanford, is from Houston, Texas. He worked as a high school chemistry teacher for four years before attending medical school at the University […]
CSA Leadership Development: Anesthesiologists as part of the Solution
Anesthesiologists are uniquely positioned to lead changes in healthcare. To better position physician anesthesiologists as part of the solution to the challenges facing our healthcare system, in 2021, the California Society of Anesthesiologists partnered with University of California, Irvine to present a Certificate in Leadership for Healthcare Management. Through this program we have learned that […]
Resident Perspective: ASA Advance 2022
The last weekend of January I attended the ASA ADVANCE conference in Dallas, TX. I had been interested in attending this particular event since I heard about it as a medical student, back when it was still called ASA Practice Management. At the time, I did not yet have the experience within anesthesia to contextualize […]
An Update on the Campaign to Save MICRA in California
CSA is a long-time member of Californians Allied for Patient Protection (CAPP), the statewide coalition to protect access to health care through the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA). MICRA ensures that injured patients receive compensation while preserving access to health care by keeping providers in practice and hospitals and clinics open. Without MICRA’s protections, […]
Blockchain, Bitcoin, and Anesthesia
Through the years, as physicians who practice peri-operative medicine, Board Certified Anesthesiologists encounter numerous advances in technology which impact their practice. These technological advances come in many forms and come at us from different vectors. The application of force on a rock and thus the movement of some electrons is but one example of a […]
Critical Blood Shortages: A Call for Patient Blood Management
On January 10, 2022, the Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies (AABB), America’s Blood Centers (ABC), and American Red Cross (ARC) released a joint statement describing a dangerously low level of the nation’s blood supply which is the most severe shortage experienced in over a decade. The nation’s blood supply exists in a […]
