Wolters Kluwer celebrates the 25th anniversary of UpToDate with launch of 25th specialty, anesthesiology

Wolters Kluwer Health announced today that UpToDate, the acclaimed evidence-based clinical decision support resource, is commemorating the 25th anniversary of its founding with the launch of its 25th clinical specialty, anesthesiology.

In 1992, Dr. Burton “Bud” Rose, a renowned nephrologist and medical textbook author, created UpToDate in the basement of his house. Initially a nephrology-focused disease reference tool accessed via floppy disk, UpToDate has since grown to become one of the most trusted and indispensable clinical resources used by doctors around the world to diagnose and treat patients.

Denise Basow, MD, President & CEO of Clinical Effectiveness at Wolters Kluwer, said about UpToDate, “Dr. Bud Rose’s real genius was to say, ‘Instead of writing about a particular disease, let’s write about the specific clinical questions that a clinician has, apply the best evidence to answer those questions, and then make very specific recommendations for care.’” Dr. Basow adds, “Today, we are changing more than 300,000 medical decisions every day in over 180 countries.”

Over the past 25 years, UpToDate has grown to include over 10,500 clinical topics in 25 specialties. A clinical faculty of more than 6,500 physician authors, editors, and peer-reviewers from 53 countries apply their deep clinical domain expertise to critically evaluate available medical literature and produce original content in a succinct, searchable format that can be quickly and easily accessed at the point of care. Today, more than 1.3 million clinicians in 187 countries consult UpToDate’s website and mobile apps, viewing more than 32 million topics per month.

Watch our special UpToDate 25th-anniversary video

The anesthesiology specialty

In concert with its 25th anniversary, UpToDate introduces its 25th specialty, anesthesiology. This new specialty covers anesthesia topics related to surgical procedures and other interventions, pain management, opioid avoidance, blood transfusion, and postoperative critical care. Led by Editors-in-Chief, Roberta Hines, MD; Stephanie B. Jones, MD; and Lena S. Sun, MD, the topics in the specialty are written to assist anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists with finding the best evidence to manage perioperative care for complex patients undergoing common and uncommon procedures, including preoperative consultation, intraoperative anesthetic management, postoperative acute care, and optimal pain management. The new specialty is also a vital resource for general practice clinicians as well as specialists such as surgeons who routinely care for patients together with anesthesiologists.

The specialty’s actionable, evidence-based content is authored, edited and reviewed by 188 world-renowned anesthesiology experts. With 270 topics associated with anesthesiology, UpToDate provides comprehensive coverage complemented by 888 graphics and 98 recommendations that are graded to specify the strength of the recommendations and the quality of their underlying evidence. Additionally, 19 patient education topics provide clinical guidance that can be shared with patients. The specialty’s content will continue to expand in the coming years.

Dr. Basow said on the launch of the new specialty, “The practice of anesthesia continues to grow more complex and challenging, as patients with significant medical comorbidities increasingly undergo complicated surgical procedures. As we commemorate a quarter-century of helping clinicians make the best care decisions, we’re committed to supporting anesthesiologists and clinicians in other specialties alike with comprehensive, trustworthy guidance from experts in the field.”