Interview with Manuel Pardo Jr.

How has Miller’s Basics of Anesthesia evolved since the previous edition? How has it evolved since the first edition?  

This edition is the first to be called Miller’s Basics of Anesthesia, recognizing Dr. Ronald D. Miller’s leadership of the book throughout his career. The main changes have included consolidating some chapters from the prior edition, as well as including new chapters on topics such as clinician well-being, point of care ultrasound, perioperative medicine, and the environmental impact of anesthesia care.  

I do not have a copy of the first edition of Basics of Anesthesia (published in 1984), however, the second edition of Basics of Anesthesia (published in 1989) was a key learning resource during my fourth year of medical school at UCLA, when I decided to become an anesthesiologist. I read and re-read Basics of Anesthesia during my anesthesia residency at UCSF in the early 1990s. Dr. Miller was the department chair at the time, so it was exciting to work with one of the individuals who edited the textbook. 

What is the most exciting aspect of the new edition? What chapter or topic covered are you most excited about?  

The growth in knowledge and scholarly publications in the field of anesthesiology have led to increased expectations that anesthesia learners must know more than they did before. As a result, the chapters in this edition of Miller’s Basics of Anesthesia have more reference than in prior editions. This is most notable in the chapter on perioperative medicine, which is appropriate given the importance of this subject to the future of anesthesiology. I’m also excited about the chapter on the environmental impact of anesthesia care, one of the new chapters in this edition. 

Who will find the greatest value from this book and why? Has the audience changed since the book first published? 

The goal of this book is to provide a concise source of information for the entire community of anesthesia learners. Some may take issue with the word “concise” in a book with 884 pages of text. However, one definition of “concise” is “brief in form but comprehensive in scope” – and that has been the goal with this edition. I view the primary value of this book as representing the breadth of the field of anesthesiology in one relatively compact volume. 

The audience for this book has not changed, but there are far more learning resources available now than in prior years. While internet searches provide many readily available sources of information, one can be consumed by the amount of information and its relevance. The role of an introductory textbook such as Miller’s Basics of Anesthesia is to provide that starting point of key information, from which further exploration can be done using a variety of other learning resources and approaches.  

What new ideas, practices, or procedures would you like to highlight for the new edition?  

Point-of-care ultrasound has rapidly expanded in use as a diagnostic tool in clinical medicine over the last decade. This edition features a new chapter on this topic. There are entire textbooks written on this subject, but this chapter provides a nice introduction to the most relevant ultrasound studies performed by anesthesia providers.  

What problem do you hope the future generation of anesthesiologists will be able to solve?  

One challenge is the continuing evolution of perioperative medicine, which will be key to the future practice of anesthesiology. I am grateful to Dr. Matthew McEvoy and his co-authors for writing the chapter on Perioperative Medicine in Miller’s Basics of Anesthesia, the concepts described are crucially important for all anesthesia providers to understand and embrace.  

Is there anything else about the book you’d like to say?  

Thanks to all who read this book and find it a helpful resource in their anesthesia learning journey! 

About the Editor  

Hello, I am Manuel Pardo, Jr., a Professor in the UCSF Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative care. I’ve been a faculty member here since 1997. I trained in both anesthesiology and critical care medicine. My clinical practice includes working in our preoperative evaluation clinic, in the operating rooms specializing in anesthesia for liver transplantation and hepatobiliary surgery, and as an intensivist in our Surgical ICU and Neuro-ICUs. My department roles include serving as vice chair for education. Earlier in my career, I was the founding director of the department’s anesthesia simulation center and I served for a decade as our residency program director.  

Purchase your copy of Miller’s Basics of Anesthesia, 8th Edition here!