FEATURED ON CBS SUNDAY MORNING
WashU Anesthesiology advances new hope for chronic pain.
Welcome to the Department of Anesthesiology
The Department of Anesthesiology at WashU Medicine is one of the most successful and innovative anesthesiology programs in the U.S. We have a long and rich history of excellence in the multi-faceted missions of collaborative patient care, education, and research.
Latest News
CBS Sunday Morning features WashU Anesthesiology’s multidisciplinary pain care and research
WashU Anesthesiology Brings Clinical Expertise, Scholarship and Leadership to ASA 2026
WashU Anesthesiology Establishes Legacy of Scientific Impact Award, Honors Brown Family as Inaugural Recipient
Funding
Among U.S. Anesthesiology Departments
Awards
2024 & 2025
Top Five
Research Impact
Groundbreaking Research
Ranked No. 1 nationally in National Institutes of Health funding four times—including back-to-back in 2024 and 2025—WashU Medicine Anesthesiology is advancing discovery in pain neuroscience, addiction biology, and perioperative medicine while ranking in the national top five for 20 consecutive years.
Explore Our Research →Train here,
thrive anywhere.®
Our training programs prepare tomorrow’s leaders in clinical and academic medicine. Trainees thrive in a challenging environment fueled by a spirit of camaraderie and our shared determination to improve patient care.
Committed to providing exceptional patient care
We work collaboratively with our partners at WashU Medicine and the nationally ranked Barnes-Jewish Hospital system to continuously improve the health and well-being of the people in our community. We take pride in being leaders in the rapidly-advancing field of anesthesiology – encompassing perioperative medicine, peripartum and critical care, and pain management.
The Gift of Time
Dr. Michael S. Avidan, former head of the Department of Anesthesiology, was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer in 2022. He was given only 6 months to live. Yet four years later he is still living a fulfilling life — gifted by clinicians and scientists the time to keep loving, working, thinking and appreciating the world around him.
This is one physician’s personal message about science, gratitude and hope.
2025 Highlights & Accomplishments
We are proud to share a brief overview of our accomplishments and highlight
the breadth and depth of these achievements across our quadripartite missions.
Our Community
Why We Love St. Louis
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