General anesthesia, popularly referred to as "general anesthesia", performs a very important medical function - anesthesia during surgery. It is thanks to anesthesia that the patient undergoes surgery without pain, which prolongs his life.
General anesthesia. What is it and what is the purpose of its use
At its core, anesthesia is a very deep sleep, which is artificially induced with the help of a special drug. With its properties, such a dream is very similar to biological.
Of the several types of anesthesia, general anesthesia is one of the most difficult. Compared with other types of anesthesia, general anesthesia has one main difference: when it is used, not only the organs are anesthetized, but the patient's consciousness is also turned off.
When using general anesthesia, analgesia, amnesia and relaxation are provided. During general anesthesia, the patient relaxes all the muscles of the body, in addition, he does not feel pain and does not remember the operation process.
In this case, all sensitivities are turned off, for example, pain, temperature, and many others.
That is, the mainthe task of general anesthesia is to introduce a person into a state in which he will not be able to move, feel the surgical intervention of the surgeon and receive any emotions from the operation.
Types of anesthesia
General anesthesia is divided into 3 types, depending on the route of administration of anesthetics (anesthesia drugs) into the body. Anesthetics can be administered to the patient by inhalation (using a face mask), intravenous (using a catheter), and a combination of routes.
If a short-term (up to 30 minutes) operation is performed, there is no risk that gastric contents enter the lungs (aspiration), and the patient maintains normal breathing, an additional device that ensures airway patency is not needed. In this case, you can use such types of anesthesia as mask or intravenous.
If the patient has difficulty breathing during anesthesia or is at risk of aspiration, the anesthesiologist uses a special device to secure the airway and protect the lungs from aspiration. In this situation, general anesthesia is called intubation. Under such circumstances, antiseptics can be administered to the patient's body both by inhalation, intravenously, and in combination.
How general anesthesia is done
Regardless of the chosen route of drug administration, the anesthesiologist performs the same procedure. He or his assistant punctures some peripheral vein, for example, on the forearm orhand, and introduces a special catheter made of plastic (such as "butterfly" or "vasofix") into it. Then the doctor attaches a special clip to the finger of the hand, which monitors the patient's breathing. After that, the anesthesiologist puts a special cuff on his shoulder, with which blood pressure is measured, and attaches special electrodes to the chest, thanks to which he monitors the patient's heartbeat. After connecting everything you need, you can begin to introduce general anesthesia.
What is this? Why is this cardio-respiratory monitoring necessary? Namely, in order to be able to continuously monitor the work of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems, constantly monitoring the patient's condition.
Only after full monitoring of heart and respiratory parameters is opened, a catheter is inserted, which gives access for drug administration, and drugs are drawn into syringes, the anesthesiologist proceeds to anesthetize the body with a specific type of anesthesia.
How many people recover from general anesthesia
It's not easy to say how long it will take for a patient to recover from anesthesia. It all depends on some points, for example, on the type and duration of the operation, on the type and dosage of anesthesia and various other indicators.
Waking up from general anesthesia sometimes takes several minutes, and sometimes several hours. Basically, after the operation is completed, the doctor wakes up the patient while still in the operating room, but the patient regains consciousness only after a while.
Drugs for general anesthesia
Choosedrugs for anesthesia, depending on the method by which the anesthetic will enter the body. If the inhalation method is used and the patient inhales vapors or gases through an endotracheal tube or special mask, drugs such as diethyl ether, dinitrogen oxide, isoflurane, enflurane, or halothane can be used.
Non-inhalation methods can be intravenous, intra-intestinal, intramuscular or oral. For pediatric anesthesia, the last 3 methods are most often used.
Non-inhalation anesthetics can be drugs such as Propofol, Altezin, Propanidide, Ketamine, Viadryl, sodium oxybutyrate and various barbiturators, such as sodium thiopental or Hexenal.
Which drug will be administered to a particular patient, you can check with the anesthesiologist, who will select the drug by doing general anesthesia. “What is it, how much time will be spent on rehabilitation, and what are the side effects of the drug” - all these questions can be asked without hesitation to the doctor, who is obliged to answer them.
Side effects of general anesthesia
Of course, general anesthesia does not pass without a trace, it leaves behind both side effects and some kind of complications. General anesthesia during surgery portends after its use symptoms such as:
- headache and dizziness;
- nausea and vomiting;
- lethargythinking;
- confusion;
- hallucinations;
- sleep disturbance;
- muscle pain;
- numbness of limbs;
- chills;
- itch;
- speech disorder;
- hearing impairment;
- sore throat.
Such symptoms last for a period while a person is recovering from anesthesia, less often unpleasant consequences can be felt for two days.
Some effects of anesthesia
Also, after anesthesia, some complications or allergic reactions may occur. From the side of the cardiovascular system, cardiac arrest may occur. From the respiratory system - pulmonary infection or respiratory depression. From the side of the nervous system - in some areas, a violation of sensitivity.
Most importantly, if you experience any incomprehensible symptoms, contact your doctor in time. This will help to avoid serious postoperative consequences and recover faster.
Often, patients are afraid of the term "general anesthesia" alone. What it is - you have already learned, anesthesia is not something terrible, it is just an auxiliary action during the operation, and if used correctly, the harm from anesthesia is minimal, any anesthetist can confirm this.
