The Breakfast Panels, sponsored by nine subspecialty societies, have been a perennial favorite of the educational venues available to ASA Annual Meeting attendees. They provide an excellent opportunity to start the day with outstanding, thought-provoking presentations by experts in several subspecialty areas of anesthesiology. This year, the panels will be held at the San Francisco Hilton from 7:30 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. on Monday, October 13, Tuesday, October 14, and Wednesday, October 15. Three panels will be conducted concurrently each morning.

On Monday, the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists will present “Hemostatic Balance in Noncardiac and Cardiac Surgery Patients.” At this session, three experts will discuss controversies and current paradigms for hemostatic therapy in high-risk surgical patients as well as the role of hematologists as consultants to anesthesiologists. Simultaneously, the American Society of Critical Care Anesthesiologists will present “New Intraoperative Therapeutics (That No One Is Going to Market to You).” This session will cover diverse topics such as tight glucose control, nesiritide and vasopressin. The third panel on the Monday program, organized by the Society for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology, will discuss “The Future of Obstetric Anesthesiology.” This session will address a variety of issues related to anesthesia for assisted reproductive technologies, sterility during central neuraxial labor analgesic procedures and autotransfusion techniques in obstetrics.

Tuesday morning Breakfast Panels include presentations by the Society for Education in Anesthesia that will focus on the topic of “Assessing Technical Competence.” At this session, three experts will discuss assessment of technical competence in regional anesthesia and airway management as well as issues related to incorporating technical competence assessment into a residency program. “How and Why Preoperative Evaluation of Surgical Outpatients Is Different” will also be discussed on Tuesday morning by a panel organized by the Society for Ambulatory Anesthesia. This session will provide information about tailoring preoperative evaluation to the surgical procedure, applying clinical guidelines to the practice scenario and how these issues apply to office-based anesthesia practice. The third panel being presented on Tuesday morning is “Pulse Oximetry Meets the Press: Point and Counterpoint,” organized by the Society for Technology in Anesthesia (STA). This session will focus on current issues involving pulse oximetry and include a presentation of research awards by the chair of the STA Committee on Research.

The three panels on the last day of the meeting will provide current information on important aspects of pediatric anesthesia, regional anesthesia and neuroanesthesia/neurocritical care. “Cerebral Ischemia — Understanding Pathophysiology and Affecting Outcome” will be presented by the Society of Neurosurgical Anesthesia and Critical Care. This panel will discuss various issues relevant to cerebral ischemia in traumatic brain injury, after subarachnoid hemorrhage and related to cardiac surgery. The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine will present “Lower Extremity Peripheral Nerve Blocks: Everything You Need to Know From the Experts.” Presentations will cover clinical applications and outcomes, equipment and complications, and video presentation of techniques. The third panel on Wednesday morning, presented by the Section on Anesthesiology of the American Academy of Pediatrics, will discuss “Pushy Parents, Production Pressure and Crazed Children: Pediatric Anesthesia in the New Millennium.” Experts will discuss the issues of parental presence during induction, use of remifentanil for pediatric anesthesia and the problem of postoperative delirium.

The Breakfast Panels are a great way to efficiently combine breakfast and education as you start your weekdays at the Annual Meeting. While the topics encompass the breadth of anesthesiology practice, seating is limited for these popular sessions, and you are encouraged to register early for the Breakfast Panels of your choice.

Kenneth J. Tuman, M.D., is the Max Sadove, M.D., Professor and Vice-Chair, Department of Anesthesiology, Rush Medical College at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois.