The Daily Dose
Anesthesia & Analgesia and A&A Practice recognized researchers and peer reviewers whose work has advanced anesthesiology research, clinical care, and scientific publishing.
The awards were presented during the A&A Lunch Symposium at the 2026 IARS and SOCCA Annual Meeting. The ceremony was moderated by A&A Editor-in-Chief Jaideep J. Pandit, MA, BMBCh, DPhil, FRCA, FFPMRCA, DM, MBA, and Deputy Editor-in-Chief David Hao, MD.
A&A Editors’ Choice Awards
First place was awarded for “Risk of Acute Complications with Rocuronium versus Cisatracurium in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease: A Propensity-Matched Study.”
Donald Prough, MD, of The University of Texas Medical Branch, received the award. The study examined the comparative risk of acute complications associated with two commonly used neuromuscular-blocking agents in patients with chronic kidney disease.
Second place recognized “An Exploratory Analysis of ChatGPT Compared to Human Performance with the Anesthesiology Oral Board Examination: Initial Insights and Implications.”
Alexander Doyal, MD, MPH, FASA, received the award for research comparing ChatGPT’s performance with that of humans on questions resembling the anesthesiology oral board examination.
Third place was awarded for “Effect of Low-Dose Ketamine Infusion in the Intensive Care Unit on Postoperative Opioid Consumption and Traumatic Memories After Hospital Discharge: A Randomized Controlled Trial.”
Karuna Wongtangman, MD, of Siriraj Hospital at Mahidol University in Bangkok, Thailand, received the award. The study evaluated whether low-dose ketamine could reduce opioid consumption and traumatic memories among postoperative intensive care patients.
Most cited and most viewed articles
The award for the most cited A&A article went to “Depth of Anesthesia and Nociception Monitoring: Current State and Vision for 2050.”
Pascal Laferriere-Langlois, MD, MSc, of the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Research Center in Montreal, received the honor. The article reviewed current monitoring technologies and considered how anesthesia-depth and nociception monitoring may evolve in the coming decades.
The most viewed article was “Causes of Perioperative Cardiac Arrest: Mnemonic, Classification, Monitoring, and Actions.”
Lingzhong Meng, MD, of Indiana University School of Medicine, received the award. The article provides a structured approach to recognizing, classifying, monitoring, and treating the causes of perioperative cardiac arrest.
A&A Practice Editors’ Choice Award
The first-place A&A Practice Editors’ Choice Award recognized “Association Between Postoperative Acute Kidney Injury and Long-Term Mortality in Patients Undergoing Major Abdominal Surgery: A Cohort-Based Study.”
Antonello Penna, PhD, MD, of Hospital Clínico de la Universidad de Chile José Joaquín Aguirre in Santiago, received the award. The study examined the relationship between postoperative acute kidney injury and long-term mortality following major abdominal surgery.
Recognition of outstanding peer reviewers
Peer reviewers are essential to maintaining the quality, accuracy, and scientific integrity of medical journals. The symposium recognized reviewers who completed the greatest number of reviews and those who provided particularly efficient evaluations.
For A&A, David Hewson, MBBS, FRCA, FHEA, PhD, of Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, completed the most reviews.
Daniel Saddawi-Konefka, MD, MBA, of Massachusetts General Hospital, was recognized as the journal’s most efficient reviewer.
For A&A Practice, Rachel Aguma Alum, MD, of Mbarara University of Science and Technology in Uganda, completed the most reviews.
Vighnesh Ashok, FRCA, of the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, India, was recognized as the most efficient reviewer.
Clinical significance
The recognized articles address several important areas of anesthesiology, including neuromuscular-blocking drugs in patients with kidney disease, artificial intelligence, ketamine and postoperative opioid use, anesthesia-depth monitoring, perioperative cardiac arrest, and acute kidney injury.
The awards also highlight the critical role of peer reviewers. Reviewers evaluate study methods, identify potential weaknesses, improve manuscripts, and help journals determine whether research is reliable and clinically meaningful.
Together, the award recipients demonstrate the importance of high-quality research, careful peer review, and international collaboration in advancing anesthesiology and perioperative medicine.
Thank you to The Daily Dose, IARS, SOCCA, Anesthesia & Analgesia, and A&A Practice for allowing us to summarize this recognition of excellence in anesthesiology research and peer review.