Anaesthesia allows surgery to be performed while the patient is asleep and with no memory of the operation. The pharmaceutical industry is researching newer and better anaesthetic agents.
Disease: Anaesthesia
Last update: June 2006
Intro
FAQ
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What is it?
Anaesthesia is the process of blocking the perception of pain. It allows surgery to be performed while the person is relaxed, asleep and with no memory of the operation. Anaesthesia may be 'local', such as an injection prior to having a wound stitched, 'regional', where anaesthetic medication is injected into the spine to numb a region of the body or 'general', where the patient is unconscious until the operation is over. -
Who gets it?
Anyone who requires surgery, or other traumatic medical procedure which otherwise would cause unbearable pain. -
How is it given?
General anaesthesia often starts with pre-medication ñ a medicine to relax and calm the patient. Then, other agents are used to induce and maintain anaesthesia. These may be given as an injection, infusion or by inhalation. A muscle relaxant may also be given to allow the surgeon to perform an operation by relaxing the body's natural muscle tone. -
What does the future hold?
New muscle relaxants are currently undergoing tests, as are new medicines to reverse their effect. Researchers are investigating new intravenous anaesthetics. Others are developing new ways of administering the anaesthetic medication.
The science of anaesthesia is one of the most significant developments of medicine and development looks set to continue in the future.