Computerized Support System Helps Anesthetists Select Clinical Options

A new software package helps predict and supervise the progress of intraoperative anesthesia, including the modeling of drug interactions according to the nature of the individual patients' physiology.

The Dräger SmartPilot View system is based on pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic patient models, which calculate and visualize the effects of analgesics (opioides) and sedatives (hypnotics) by providing a preview of the calculated course of the anesthesia, before the pharmaceuticals are applied to the patient. The program also displays the effects of the relaxants included in the anesthesia, with the corresponding time of occurrence. The SmartPilot View system can also support anesthetists in detecting and preventing both underdosing and overdosing, even if the anesthesia was initiated intravenously, but then continued with volatile agents.


The SmartPilot View system displays all the information required for controlling the anesthesia in a single glance; in addition to measured parameters such as pulse rate and blood pressure, the software also displays the chronological sequence of the applied pharmaceuticals, and their effects, in a graphical representation. The anesthetist can see precisely which calculated stage of the anesthesia the patient is undergoing, and what the predicted course for the immediate future will be. Event markers such as intubation, incision, or repositioning enable the anesthetist to document important events during the course of the anesthesia.

The Dräger SmartPilot View system is product of Drägerwerk (Lübeck, Germany), and operates in conjunction with other Dräger anesthesia and monitoring systems. In combination with specified syringe pumps (the B. Braun Space or the Dräger IVenus), the anesthetist can use the full functionality of the software.

Related Links:
Drägerwerk