Types of anesthesia - spinal and epidural anesthesia, endotracheal and local anesthesia

Types of anesthesia - spinal and epidural anesthesia, endotracheal and local anesthesia

Types of anesthesia - general, intravenous and epidural

Anesthesia is pain relief that enables the doctor to perform a surgical type of medical care. Specialists use different types of anesthesia in their work, the specific choice depends on the difficulty of the operation being performed, the general state of the patient's health and other factors.

Inhalation anesthesia

This type of anesthesia, which is used most often, is easy to perform, relatively easy to manage and has a short-term effect, which is important for small surgical interventions. Inhalation anesthesia is the introduction of narcotics with the help of a mask, which ensures their entry into the organs of the respiratory system. Narcotan, nitrous oxide, Trilene, Fluorotan and Etran are most often used for this type of anesthesia. There is a certain problem - to achieve the desired result, it is necessary that the effect of anesthesia be deep, and this entails serious complications. Therefore, this type of anesthesia is most often used in children's surgery. Children under anesthesia, administered by inhalation, feel great, they do not have a violation of respiratory function, complications are noted extremely rarely.

Intravenous anesthesia

This type of anesthesia belongs to the non-inhalation types of anesthesia, which are characterized by a long-lasting effect and greater depth of action compared to inhalation anesthesia. Intravenous anesthesia can be performed using the following drugs:

  • Thiopental, Recofol, Oxybutyrate and Propofol - classic analgesia
  • Fentayl with diphenhydramine - neuroleptanalgesia, which can be performed on spontaneous breathing or combined with artificial lung ventilation
  • Sibazon with Fentatil is an ataralgesia that provides superficial, gentle anesthesia and can be used with other types of analgesia.

This type of anesthesia is used for the removal of abscesses and phlegmons, which are accompanied by complications, it is possible to treat benign tumors of small sizes, if their removal under general anesthesia is impossible.

Local anesthesia

Treatment under anesthesia is the only possibility of providing surgical assistance to the patient or performing complex manipulations. It is not uncommon for a doctor to anesthetize a specific area, which is provided by surrounding it with an anesthetic solution and is called local anesthesia. Such anesthesia is used for opening abscesses, treating teeth, and cutting hernias. Local anesthesia is the introduction of anesthetic into the skin and other anatomical structures of the place where surgical intervention is planned.

Anesthetic injections are superficial, only in exceptional cases the doctor can carry out a deeper injection of the drug. Local anesthesia is performed by injecting the drug through a very thin needle, so the anesthesia procedure itself is not too painful. Anesthetic administration is often combined with sedation - sedatives are injected into the patient's body, which normalize the psychological state of a person, reduce feelings of anxiety and restlessness.

Despite the fact that local anesthesia is widely used in medicine, the consequences of anesthesia can be quite serious. For example, injectable anesthetics can have a negative effect on the heart and brain, leading to heart rhythm disturbances, convulsions and loss of consciousness. At the same time, doctors claim that injection anesthesia is safer for the patient's health compared to general anesthesia.

Endotracheal anesthesia

One of the most frequently used methods of anesthesia during complex surgical interventions is endotracheal anesthesia, which involves the immersion of the body in a state of deep narcotic (medicated) sleep. At the same time, the muscles completely relax, the patient has no independent breathing. In order to achieve the required state, doctors perform a set of measures for the patient:

  1. Intubation of the trachea is the introduction of an intubation tube into the lumen of the trachea, which is necessary to provide artificial ventilation of the lungs.
  2. Intravenous administration of narcotic anesthetics, sedatives and tranquilizers.
  3. Introduction of muscle relaxants - they block neuromuscular transmission.
  4. Artificial lung ventilation.

The quality of endotracheal anesthesia depends not only on the anesthesiologist's experience, but also on how well the patient's condition is monitored. Blood pressure, pulse, and oxygen saturation must be monitored.

Spinal and epidural anesthesia

The use of anesthesia during cesarean section is a necessary procedure. Correctly performed anesthesia will help to actively participate in the birth of a child and reduce the risk of complications. In addition, tracheal intubation is not possible during labor.

Epidural anesthesia has a number of advantages:

  • the patient's consciousness is completely preserved during the operation
  • cardiovascular system works stably
  • motor activity is partially preserved
  • there are no reflex reactions to irritation of the upper respiratory tract.

There is spinal anesthesia, which ensures the onset of the effect in a maximum of 5 minutes after the administration of drugs, that is, it is possible to start the operation urgently. This type of pain relief has clear advantages:

  • technically, the execution is easier and safer
  • systemic intoxication is completely absent
  • early activation of a woman after surgery
  • there is a possibility of early breastfeeding
  • medicated depression of newborns is absent.

By the way, the price of good anesthesia consists of many components, as for spinal anesthesia, the patient's expenses are reduced here.

Any operation under general anesthesia is a stress for the body, so all manipulations to put the patient into a drug-induced sleep should be performed by an experienced specialist. Only the competent work of an anesthesiologist can guarantee the absence of consequences.

All the information about how anesthesia is performed, how much is removed from anesthesia, and what is dangerous about it, can be obtained on our website Dobrobut.com.
Surgical operations
Family doctor consultation

Updated: 05.04.2025
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Doctors who advise on this issue:
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