Different Types of Anesthesia

A resident of Omaha, Nebraska, Nita Katherine Babcock graduated from the University of Nebraska Medical Centre with an MD in medicine in 1979. With over 40 years of experience in the medical field, Nita Katherine Babcock works with McLaren Regional Centre as a clinical anesthesiologist.

An anesthesiologist is a medical practitioner responsible for administering medication to produce a loss of sensation to patients undergoing surgery. There are four main categories of anesthesia used in surgery.

1. General anesthesia - This is the strongest type of anesthesia and is usually used for major operations such as an open heart or knee replacement surgery. A combination of medication is administered to the patient through an intravenous (IV) needle or a mask. General anesthesia leads to a loss of consciousness. While under general anesthesia, the anesthesiologist closely monitors the patient’s vital organs during the procedure.

2. Monitored anesthesia care - This type of anesthesia is usually administered to patients undergoing minimally invasive procedures such as cataract surgery and colonoscopy. It is administered through an IV. Although a patient can be heavily sedated, the difference between MAC and general anesthesia is that in MAC, a patient is not chemically paralyzed and does not need assistance with breathing.

3. Regional anesthesia - This type of anesthesia is used to numb a large part of the body while the patient remains conscious in procedures such as surgeries of the abdomen, leg, arm, or childbirth.

4. Local Anesthesia - Contrary to regional anesthesia, where a large part of the body is numbed, with local anesthesia, only a small area is numbed for procedures such as removing a mole, filling a cavity, or when having skin biopsy. The patient remains alert and awake during the process.