• What happened to the fifth Spasm?

The fifth Laryngospasm, Dave Kimball, was a member of the group from 1999 to 2009 and appeared in the group's first two videos, "Waking Up Is Hard To Do" and "Breathe".  In 2009, when the Laryngospasms auditioned for America's Got Talent, Dave resigned from the group, as his other commitments made it difficult for him to find time for the necessary rehearsals. Dave coaches at least four of his kid's teams and is active in his church, and he felt he didn't have the time to be a Spasm anymore. This was a huge loss for the group, not only for losing his vocal talents, but also because he was a great presence on stage--he was willing to do all the silly stuff no one else would do. We miss him.

• What is a Laryngospasm?

Medically, a laryngospasm is an involuntary spasm of the vocal cords that prevents or restricts ventilation of the lungs. Laryngospasms most often occur during awakening from anesthesia, especially with some of the older anesthetic agents we used to have. When this happens, attempts to ventilate the lungs result in a high-pitched, squeaky sound, which we thought could be a perfect name for a group of parody singing nurse anesthetists. The name is an inside joke in the medical and nursing community, but non-medical folks are at often bemused by it, and it's really hard to spell. Hence our recent change of our website address to www.TheSpasms.com. Anyway, that's our name, and we're sticking with it.

• What is a nurse anesthetist?

Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, CRNAs, are advanced practice RNs with extensive training in anesthesia. Currently CRNAs graduate their anesthesia programs with master's degrees, but by 2015, new graduates will have doctorate degrees. Over half of anesthetics in the U.S. are administered by CRNAs. In some practices, CRNAs work with or are supervised by physician trained anesthesiologists, in others, we work independently. CRNAs administer the full scope of modern anesthesia, including all general and regional techniques. In many communities, especially in rural areas, CRNAs are the only anesthesia providers.

• I thought you guys were anesthesiologists.

Nope. We're nurse anesthestists, and we are proud to be part of a long tradition of anesthesia nursing. Many of us work with physician anesthesiologists, and we certainly respect their training, but we are fully capable anesthesia providers in our own right. Several of us do so on a regular basis.

•  How do you get away with your song parodies?

Asking a group of nurse comedians for legal advice probably isn't the best idea, and we are by no means offering any. That said, we refer anyone who asks us this question to the Supreme Court decision Acuff-Rose v. Campbell . Weird Al is able to request and get permission for his parodies, but we obviously don't have his ability to reach other artists. The Capitol Steps, the other act we most closely resemble, don't ask for permission to do their parodies and neither do we. We do, however, acknowledge the original artist of any song we parody.