Ischemia-reperfusion syndrome may be associated with many conditions that require surgical or anaesthetic intervention like organ transplantation, cardiopulmonary bypass etc. Ischemic preconditioning can act as a protective mechanism in many vital organs against the actual ischemic episodes or stressful situations. Various preconditioning determinants are cited in literature and one among them is the anaesthetic induced preconditioning (APC). This review focuses on protective effects of various anaesthetics and adjuvants on the vital organs upon anaesthetic preconditioning before the actual insult or surgical intervention. The major vital organs have been found to respond positively to APC. Anaesthetic intervention prior to surgery can precondition the vital organs, pre-empt ischemia reperfusion injury (IR) and help to minimise deleterious effects. The elucidation of the mechanism for APC may help the clinical extrapolation of the results especially during organ transplantation, trauma, shock or episodes requiring Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).