Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsWhat It IsUsesRisksOther TypesWhile You’re UnderWaking UpSafety After Anesthesia
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
What It Is
Uses
Risks
Other Types
While You’re Under
Waking Up
Safety After Anesthesia
The type of anesthesia you get depends on the nature of the procedure being performed, your age and overall health, and the preferences of the surgeon and anesthesia provider. With some procedures, you may be able to choose between different types of anesthesia, while other procedures require a specific type.
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What Is General Anesthesia?
General anesthesia is the strongest type and the one most frequently used during surgery. It essentially puts you into a medically inducedcoma.
Typically used during surgery, general anesthesia allows a healthcare provider to provide treatments that would be extremely painful if the person were awake and able to feel.
Sometimes, it even involves using medication to paralyze the body’s muscles, including those that make breathing possible. For this reason, people who receive general anesthesia require a ventilator to do the work of the diaphragm and other muscles that help make it possible to inhale and exhale.
Uses of General Anesthesia
General anesthesia is typically used for more serious surgeries, lengthy procedures, and procedures that would typically be very painful.This type of anesthesia not only allows a person to undergo a procedure without pain but also allows the person to be unconscious for the procedure.
For some surgeries, it would be very traumatic to be awake for the procedure, whether or not you were able to feel pain. Imagine having a body part such as your appendix removed, and being wide awake. While you might not feel any pain, it could still be extremely distressing.
Risks of General Anesthesia
The risks associated with anesthesia vary widely from procedure to procedure, and from person to person. Everyone has their own individual risk level, as no two people are exactly the same.
For example, a 90-year-old person with chronic illnesses will have a completely different level of risk than a healthy 12-year-old, even if they’re having the same procedure.
Some risks that may be experienced while under anesthesia include:
Some risks and side effects come after the procedure is over, including:
Other Types of Anesthesia
Before you decide that you need general anesthesia for your procedure, it is important to know the different types of anesthesia that are available. The other most common types of anesthesia are:
During General Anesthesia
The process of general anesthesia often starts with sedation, to make it possible to insert a breathing tube. The type of sedation is left to the anesthesia provider to choose and can vary widely depending upon the person and the type of surgery.
Once you’re in the operating room, attached to the monitoring devices, and the safety protocols have been completed, anesthesia can begin.
It is common practice that before sedating medications are given, a “time out” is done in which the medical team verifies your identity and the procedure you’re having. This is done to prevent errors such as the wrong surgery being performed.
Once the time out is completed, you can be given sedating medication and the anesthesia provider starts preparing you for surgery.
Intubation and Ventilation
Often, the muscles of the body are paralyzed during general anesthesia, including the muscles that help the lungs draw breaths, which means the lungs are unable to function on their own.
For this reason, you’ll be hooked up to aventilatorthat will take over the job of inhaling for your lungs. To be clear, the lungs still work during anesthesia, they just can’t draw breath because the muscles that do that work are temporarily disabled.
Being placed on a ventilator requires that a tube, called an endotracheal tube, be inserted into your airway. This tube is then attached to larger tubing that goes to the ventilator, allowing the ventilator to deliver oxygen to you.
The process of inserting the tube is calledintubation. People are anesthetized prior to inserting a breathing device.
Monitoring
During the procedure, the goal is for you to be completely unaware of what is happening and to be without pain.
How Do They Wake You Up From Anesthesia?
How you wake from anesthesia depends on the type of surgery you had and how well you’re breathing. The goal after general anesthesia is to extubate the person—remove the breathing tube—as quickly as possible after surgery ends.
At the end of the procedure, when the procedure is common and uncomplicated, you’ll typically be given medications that reverse anesthesia, waking you up and ending the muscle paralysis. Then the breathing tube can come out right away and you’ll be breathing on your own within minutes.
When procedures are longer, reversal agents are still given prior to extubation. In this situation, you’ll wake in the PACU—post-anesthesia care unit—and move to a hospital room or go home once you’re completely awake. People typically will have pain in the recovery phase, which is managed.
For some very serious surgeries, such as open-heart surgery or brain surgery, the person is allowed to slowly wake from anesthesia with no reversal agent to bring the muscles out of paralysis. This means the person may remain on the ventilator until they’re fully conscious, which can be between six and eight hours after surgery.
Some people may have to stay on a ventilator for days or even longer after surgery, but this is less common. It happens most often with people with certain risk factors, including respiratory diseases, smoking, and obesity.
Eating and Drinking After Anesthesia
This process can take hours, or even days if the person experiences nausea, vomiting, or just doesn’t feel up to taking food or fluids. In most cases, people are able to eat regular foods within a day of having general anesthesia.
Safety After General Anesthesia
It can take a full day or longer to have anesthesia completely wear off, and until it does, the average person may find themselves feeling sleepy, nauseated, or even confused. It’s important to take steps to stay safe while you recover from the anesthesia.
For at least the first 24 hours after surgery:
A Word From Verywell
General anesthesia does have risks, but the rewards of having a pain-free surgery can be substantial. Your decision to have surgery should weigh the risks of the procedure and the anesthesia you will receive against the potential rewards.
14 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Brown EN, Pavone KJ, Naranjo M.Multimodal general anesthesia: Theory and practice.Anesth Analg. 2018;127(5):1246–1258. doi:10.1213/ANE.0000000000003668American Society of Anesthesiologists.Types of anesthesia: General anesthesia.Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.Anesthesia may predispose patients to corneal abrasions.Sahni V.Dental considerations in anaesthesia.JRSM Open. 2016;7(12):2054270416675082. doi:10.1177/2054270416675082University of Michigan, Michigan Medicine.General anesthesia: Topic overview.Gottschalk A, Van Aken H, Zenz M, Standl T.Is anesthesia dangerous?Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2011;108(27):469–474. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2011.0469American Society of Anesthesiologists.Anesthesia 101: Effects of anesthesia.American Society of Anesthesiologists.Anesthesia 101: Anesthesia risks.Carroll J, Alavi K.Pathogenesis and management of postoperative ileus.Clin Colon Rectal Surg. 2009;22(1):47–50. doi:10.1055/s-0029-1202886Epstein SK, Joyce-Brady MF.Management of the difficult-to-wean adult patient in the intensive care unit. UpToDate.American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Preventing blood clots after orthopaedic surgery.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Anesthesia.American Society of Anesthesiologists.Distinguishing monitored anesthesia care (“MAC”) from moderate sedation/analgesia (conscious sedation).Karcz M, Papadakos PJ.Respiratory complications in the postanesthesia care unit: A review of pathophysiological mechanisms.Can J Respir Ther. 2013;49(4):21–29.
14 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Brown EN, Pavone KJ, Naranjo M.Multimodal general anesthesia: Theory and practice.Anesth Analg. 2018;127(5):1246–1258. doi:10.1213/ANE.0000000000003668American Society of Anesthesiologists.Types of anesthesia: General anesthesia.Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.Anesthesia may predispose patients to corneal abrasions.Sahni V.Dental considerations in anaesthesia.JRSM Open. 2016;7(12):2054270416675082. doi:10.1177/2054270416675082University of Michigan, Michigan Medicine.General anesthesia: Topic overview.Gottschalk A, Van Aken H, Zenz M, Standl T.Is anesthesia dangerous?Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2011;108(27):469–474. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2011.0469American Society of Anesthesiologists.Anesthesia 101: Effects of anesthesia.American Society of Anesthesiologists.Anesthesia 101: Anesthesia risks.Carroll J, Alavi K.Pathogenesis and management of postoperative ileus.Clin Colon Rectal Surg. 2009;22(1):47–50. doi:10.1055/s-0029-1202886Epstein SK, Joyce-Brady MF.Management of the difficult-to-wean adult patient in the intensive care unit. UpToDate.American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Preventing blood clots after orthopaedic surgery.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Anesthesia.American Society of Anesthesiologists.Distinguishing monitored anesthesia care (“MAC”) from moderate sedation/analgesia (conscious sedation).Karcz M, Papadakos PJ.Respiratory complications in the postanesthesia care unit: A review of pathophysiological mechanisms.Can J Respir Ther. 2013;49(4):21–29.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Brown EN, Pavone KJ, Naranjo M.Multimodal general anesthesia: Theory and practice.Anesth Analg. 2018;127(5):1246–1258. doi:10.1213/ANE.0000000000003668American Society of Anesthesiologists.Types of anesthesia: General anesthesia.Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.Anesthesia may predispose patients to corneal abrasions.Sahni V.Dental considerations in anaesthesia.JRSM Open. 2016;7(12):2054270416675082. doi:10.1177/2054270416675082University of Michigan, Michigan Medicine.General anesthesia: Topic overview.Gottschalk A, Van Aken H, Zenz M, Standl T.Is anesthesia dangerous?Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2011;108(27):469–474. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2011.0469American Society of Anesthesiologists.Anesthesia 101: Effects of anesthesia.American Society of Anesthesiologists.Anesthesia 101: Anesthesia risks.Carroll J, Alavi K.Pathogenesis and management of postoperative ileus.Clin Colon Rectal Surg. 2009;22(1):47–50. doi:10.1055/s-0029-1202886Epstein SK, Joyce-Brady MF.Management of the difficult-to-wean adult patient in the intensive care unit. UpToDate.American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Preventing blood clots after orthopaedic surgery.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Anesthesia.American Society of Anesthesiologists.Distinguishing monitored anesthesia care (“MAC”) from moderate sedation/analgesia (conscious sedation).Karcz M, Papadakos PJ.Respiratory complications in the postanesthesia care unit: A review of pathophysiological mechanisms.Can J Respir Ther. 2013;49(4):21–29.
Brown EN, Pavone KJ, Naranjo M.Multimodal general anesthesia: Theory and practice.Anesth Analg. 2018;127(5):1246–1258. doi:10.1213/ANE.0000000000003668
American Society of Anesthesiologists.Types of anesthesia: General anesthesia.
Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.Anesthesia may predispose patients to corneal abrasions.
Sahni V.Dental considerations in anaesthesia.JRSM Open. 2016;7(12):2054270416675082. doi:10.1177/2054270416675082
University of Michigan, Michigan Medicine.General anesthesia: Topic overview.
Gottschalk A, Van Aken H, Zenz M, Standl T.Is anesthesia dangerous?Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2011;108(27):469–474. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2011.0469
American Society of Anesthesiologists.Anesthesia 101: Effects of anesthesia.
American Society of Anesthesiologists.Anesthesia 101: Anesthesia risks.
Carroll J, Alavi K.Pathogenesis and management of postoperative ileus.Clin Colon Rectal Surg. 2009;22(1):47–50. doi:10.1055/s-0029-1202886
Epstein SK, Joyce-Brady MF.Management of the difficult-to-wean adult patient in the intensive care unit. UpToDate.
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Preventing blood clots after orthopaedic surgery.
Johns Hopkins Medicine.Anesthesia.
American Society of Anesthesiologists.Distinguishing monitored anesthesia care (“MAC”) from moderate sedation/analgesia (conscious sedation).
Karcz M, Papadakos PJ.Respiratory complications in the postanesthesia care unit: A review of pathophysiological mechanisms.Can J Respir Ther. 2013;49(4):21–29.
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