Introduction:General anaesthesia (GA) clearly affects brain function in the post-operative period. Impairment of attention, memory, reaction time, and depressed level of consciousness are often reported. Background and Aims: Aim of the study was to compare theeffects of propofol and sevoflurane on cognitive functions andmemory in terms of psychometric test pre and post generalanaesthesia. Methods:60 patients ofAmerican Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) grade I andIIscheduled for general anaesthesia were included in thisstudy. According to anaesthetic considerations and patients’needs, they were given either propofol infusion or sevofluranefor maintenance of general anaesthesia. Intraoperatively, depth of anaesthesia was monitored by clinical assessment.Assessment of cognitive functions and memory of patients wasdone preoperatively by following: MMSE score, CVLT, DST,RBMT and Recalling the names of surgeon and anaesthetist.After extubation, patients were observed for recovery byAldrette recovery score up to 1 hour and assessed for pain byvisual analogue scale up to 2 hours postoperatively. Cognitivefunction and memory was assessed postoperatively upto 2hours. Results:The recovery characteristics were better with sevoflurane thanpropofol up to 60 minutes.  Sevoflurane had less impact on cognitivefunction as compared to propofol up to 30minutes postoperatively.  Effect on verbal and numerical memory wasless with sevoflurane as compared to propofolup to 30 minutes.  Effect on semantic memory was less withsevoflurane as compared to propofol up to 5minutes except recall memory. Conclusion: Propofol was associated with significant impact on cognitive functions in comparison to sevoflurane in the immediate post-operative period. Sevoflurane anaesthesia might be a better option in day care surgeries.

Cognitive function, general Anaesthesia, memory, propofol, sevoflurane