"On the periphery": a patient's view of a surgical operation. Oil painting by Pauline Annesley, 1955.

The painter was a patient who averred that during an operation under general anaesthetic in 1955 she regained consciousness, and subsequently recorded in the painting her memory of the scene in the operating theatre. Such events have been frequently recorded: in some instances a long-acting relaxant drug (Tubarine) was used together with an anaesthetic (Pentothal) to induce instant loss of consciousness. On occasion, the effect of the anaesthetic wore off while the patient still remained paralysed under the influence of the relaxant. A doctor (Nigel Grunshaw) who had the same experience when a patient published an account of his experience in the BMJ in 1990 (24 March 1990, p. 821). Since 1985 anaesthetic awareness has been the subject of litigation and compensation payments. Further comment in: Melanie Garth, 'Der Albtraum vom Skalpell', Blick am Abend (Luzern/Zug), 24 Februar 2012, p. 13