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Who is Giving Your Anesthesia During Surgery?

By Jennifer Heisler, RN, About.com

Updated: January 04, 2009

About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by the Medical Review Board

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Anesthesiologist Assistants: Professionals Who Provide Anesthesia

An anesthesiologist’s assistant (AA) is a trained professional who has obtained a bachelor’s degree in a health or science field, then completed a master’s level program in the administration of anesthesia.

Anesthesiologist assistants must be supervised by an anesthesiologist, and they may not practice independently.

There are currently less than 1,000 licensed AAs in the United States.

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