Depending on the surgery you require and your health, I can offer different options to provide you with the best anaesthetic care. Most of the time there will be only one option available, however occasionally I can offer you alternatives. There are also situations where we can combine two techniques to best meet your needs.
When we meet immediately before your surgery I will offer my expert advice on what I consider to be the best anaesthetic technique for your procedure. This is a conversation that will occur before I commence your anaesthetic.
General Anaesthesia
General anaesthetic drugs will be given to you through a drip (intravenous) and you will be put into a state of deep sleep or controlled unconsciousness. You will not move, feel pain or be aware of the surgery. Occasionally, particularly in small children, it might be necessary to induce the anaesthetic using inhaled gas via a face mask instead of intravenously.
Sedation
Sedative drugs will be given to you through a drip (intravenous) and you will be put into a state of reduced level of consciousness. It is not as deep a sleep as with a General Anaesthesia. While most patients do not remember anything, some might have a blurry memory of the surgical procedure. The level of sedation is carefully managed to allow you to be comfortable and safe at the same time.
Regional
Regional Anaesthesia involves the injection of local anaesthetic around major nerves creating numbness. This can be a limb or your lower body through a spinal or epidural anaesthesia. In the first instance, I will connect you to monitors and gain access to a vein through a drip. Regional anaesthesia is usually combined with sedation and, occasionally, it is combined with general anaesthesia.
The duration of the anaesthesia is aimed to last for as long as is necessary to complete your surgery. Sometimes, the numbness and heaviness of the “blocked” limb can last several hours after the surgery has finished. Occasionally, the surgery can take longer than expected or the “block” can wear off quicker than anticipated. For these cases, the plan B is to convert the regional technique to a general anaesthesia.
As the regional anaesthesia wears off, you will start to feel some pain. However, by this time, I would have initiated an adequate pain relief regime.
Local
After connecting you to monitors and gaining access to a vein (drip), I inject a drug called “local anaesthetic” around the surgical site creating numbness only in that area. Small, superficial surgeries can be done with local anaesthesia (e.g. small lacerations, skin cancer removal). Patients are often awake and, occasionally, it is combined with sedation.
Questions
If you have any questions regarding your anaesthetic, please do not hesitate to email me with your questions and/or contact details and I will get back to you as soon as possible.
Please understand that I cannot make phone calls during surgery, so it might take many hours before I call you back.
SMB Anaesthetics 