What is the Anesthesia Care Team?

The care team consists of an anesthesiologist and an anesthetist who work together to provide the best medical care possible during surgery as well as safe and effective relief from pain during your postoperative hospital stay. An anesthesiologist interviews all patients preoperatively to discuss the most appropriate anesthetic management; the final decision will be based on your general health, the type and duration of your surgery and your preference. During your surgery, a member of the care team will be with you at all times to monitor your comfort and safety.

About My Anesthesia

Pre-Anesthetic Instructions

1. Nothing to eat or drink after midnight the evening before surgery

2. You may brush your teeth the morning of surgery, but try not to swallow any     water. 

3. Your surgeon or anesthesiologist may instruct you to take specific medications the morning of surgery. If so, a small sip of water may be taken with your medication.

What Types of Anesthesia are available?

General anesthesia, or "going to sleep", involves the administration of a medication (usually intravenously) that causes you to become unconscious and pain free from the start of the anesthetic to the completion of surgery. Additional intravenous medication and anesthetic gases are administered during surgery to ensure you remain asleep and pain free.

Regional anesthesia involves making a portion of your body insensitive to pain by temporarily "blocking" large groups of nerves or the spinal cord by the injection of local anesthetics. Regional anesthetics include spinal, or epidural anesthesia which, anesthetize the body up to the chest, brachial plexus or bier (IV regional) blocks which anesthetize your entire arm and cervical blocks which anesthetize the neck. Patients receiving regional anesthesia generally receive intravenous sedation also, so the can rest throughout the operation with less anxiety and awareness. 

Monitored anesthesia care (MAC) is intravenous sedation or other medications administered by a member of the anesthesia care team as needed during the procedure. A member of the care team will remain with you throughout the procedure to monitor your comfort and safety.

What are the Risks of Anesthesia?

As with all medical procedures, anesthesia has inherent risks. Prior to surgery, you will be asked to read and sign an "informed consent" document detailing these risks. Advancements in anesthesiology have made serious risks quite rare. The care team is constantly monitoring your condition throughout surgery, and is prepared to deal with anesthetic problems should they arise. You can help us in providing the safest anesthetic possible by following your instructions given to you.

What Happens in the Recovery Room?

At the completion of surgery, you will be taken to the recovery room (Post-Anesthesia Care Unit) to allow your anesthetic to significantly "wear off" while specially trained nurses monitor your progress, and make you as comfortable as possible. Your anesthesiologist is responsible for your safety in the recovery room and directs the nurses in the provision of your care. If your surgical procedure is being performed as an outpatient, your anesthesiologist is the physician who determines when you are ready to be discharged.

What about my Pain?

If you and your surgeon desire, physicians from the anesthesia care team will manage your pain after surgery. Under local anesthesia, a small plastic catheter is inserted into the epidural space which is outside the spinal canal in your back. After surgery a computerized pump infuses a narcotic through the catheter; the narcotic "blocks" the pain signals form the region of surgery, providing a superior quality of pain relief. Epidural analgesia can be used to control pain after thoracic, abdominal, pelvic or lower extremity surgery. There is a great deal of individual variation in the amount of pain medication each person requires. We start at a dose that has been proven safe for virtually any patient. If you experience discomfort, let your nurse know and your medication will be gradually adjusted by a pain center physician until you are comfortable. There are few restrictions on your activity while the epidural is in place and you should not experience any discomfort for the epidural catheter. The pump is programmed to allow no more than one dose within a 10-15 minute time period, so you do not need to worry about getting too much medication. The pain center physicians visit patients receiving epidural infusions twice daily or more, if necessary, to review their progress and make appropriate adjustments in therapy as needed. A physician is available at all times to supervise your pain therapy.