
The first thing two anesthesiologists said when asked about deep monitored anesthesia care (MAC) was that the term is often misunderstood by surgeons or patients who are expecting something else entirely. Beverly Philip, MD, FACA, FASA, president of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), instead uses the term “deep sedation.”
“MAC is a billing term that gives information on the patient’s condition. The issue is, what effects are the patients actually getting?”
Anesthesia, at its core, is a four-stage continuum without strictly defined silos, as evidenced by the American Society of Anesthesia (ASA) in its “depth of sedation” chart (below):