Cognition is the process by which the brain acquires，remembers and processes information. Postoperative cognitive dysfunction （POCD） is a kind of cognitive dysfunction in patients after anesthesia operation and is a common complication after surgery. The clinical manifestations of patients with POCD vary widely，mainly due to impaired short-term memory and executive function，especially short-term memory impairment. In recent years，POCD has been paid more and more attention，and the incidence of POCD among young and old patients，especially those have experienced large surgery，is extremely high. POCD affects postoperative recovery of patients，and early POCD may develop into long-term cognitive impairment，which will seriously affect the quality of life and cause severe economic burden to families and society.Although anesthetic drugs are constantly updated，their performance is constantly optimized，and related monitoring techniques are increasingly improved in anesthetic surgery，the incidence of POCD is still high. So far，there is still no effective method to prevent POCD. This paper summarized the effects and mechanisms of various anesthetic drugs on POCD，and aimed to provide references and new ideas for the implementation of clinical anesthesia programs and the prevention and treatment of POCD.