Neurocognitive Development in Children Who Received General Anesthesia Before the Age of 3 Years: A Historic-prospective, Controlled, Single Center Cross-section Trial

The infantile brain has to pass essential, mayor steps in the first 36 months of life. During that period of development it is particularly vulnerable to toxic, exogenic influences. This study wants to review the long-term effects of children who were exposed to anesthesia in the first three years of their life. Therefore the investigators will examine children at age of 4-10 that were exposed to anesthesia and compare their neurocognitive capacity to children who did not have any exposure to anesthesia. The investigators plan on measuring the intelligence quotient using standardized tests which will be performed by a trained psychologist. In addition there will be a questionnaire concerning behavioral characteristics and educational development which is filled by the parents. The exposed children will be recruited from our preexisting database, the control group will be recruited from practitioners and the pediatric walk-in-clinic.