ANESTHESIA: UNDERSTANDING ANESTHESIA

What Is Anesthesia?

Anesthesia means without pain. It is the specialty of medicine for relief of pain and total care of the surgical patient, during and after surgery.

Anesthesia Professionals

Anesthesiologist — A physician specializing in the practice of anesthesiology and the use of anesthesia medicines.

Anesthesia Support Personnel
Nurse Anesthesist (CRNA) — A registered nurse with additional training to administer anesthesia under a supervising physician.

Anesthesiologist's Assistants — Physician's assistants with additional education and training in anesthesia who must work under the supervision of an anesthesiologist.

Types of Anesthesia

General Anesthesia — The act of being "put to sleep" by administration of IV medications and/or use of gases to cause complete unconsciousness and loss of pain perception.

Regional Anesthesia — The use of medicine to block feeling to an area of the body. Patients are usually given medicine to relax them and reduce anxiety while undergoing surgery. Examples of regional anesthesia include spinal block, epidural anesthesia and saddle blocks.

Monitored Anesthesia Care (MAC) — Often called local anesthesia with sedation. The patient is given enough sedation to make them unaware or less anxious during the surgery.

Local Anesthesia — The use of medicine in the area of surgery, either by injection or topical to make the area numb. Usually, no other medicine is given.

Risks of Anesthesia

It is impossible to list all possible risks but they include:

Allergic Reaction to Anesthetic Agents — There can be an adverse reaction to any agent but a listing of known drug allergies can decrease the possible risk.

Pre-existing Conditions — Medical conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, malnutrition, pregnancy and many others increase risk of problems with anesthesia. Knowing the pre-existing conditions, the anesthesiologist's team will constantly monitor the patient with the ability to respond to any problems that may arise.

Preparing for Anesthesia

A pre-operative evaluation is performed by the anesthesiologist. This includes:

· A review of the medical history

· A discussion of the types of anesthesia and the risks of each

· Specific instructions regarding when to stop eating/drinking before surgery

· A review of what medicines should or should not be taken the morning of surgery

The pre-operative evaluation may take place:

· In a pre-operative clinic or area of the hospital,

· At the bedside of the patient in the hospital or

· Over the phone

It is extremely important that the anesthesiologist have a complete list of all medicines taken regularly by the patient including all prescription, over-the-counter and herbal medicines.