09/29/2026
Volatile anesthetic washout is used to accelerate and control emergence from general anesthesia. At the conclusion of surgery, the anesthesiologist rapidly reduces the alveolar and cerebral concentration of the anesthetic while maintaining adequate ventilation, analgesia, and physiologic stability.
How fresh gas flow, alveolar ventilation, anesthetic solubility, and duration of exposure govern volatile anesthetic washout and the speed of emergence at the end of surgery.