Anaesthesia

What is anaesthesia?
“Anaesthesia” means without feeling, and is what is necessary when someone has to undergo a surgical operation or some other painful procedure on the body. “Analgesia” means without pain.

Types of anaesthesia and your choice
When you need an operation there is often a choice of what sort of anaesthetic is needed to enable the surgeon to perform the operation.

A general anaesthetic
General anaesthesia consists of three parts: narcosis, analgesia and muscle relaxation.

Epidural and spinal anaesthesia
Local anaesthetic applied to the space around the spinal cord (an epidural) or injected into the fluid surrounding the spinal cord (a spinal) will anaesthetise a large area of the lower body depending on how much is injected and where it is injected.

Is anaesthesia safe?
Modern anaesthesia has become a very safe procedure, considerably safer than travelling in your car.

Local anaesthesia
This is the simplest form of anaesthesia.

Conscious sedation
This is a very light form of anaesthesia where the patient does not even lose consciousness.