What To Expect From General Anesthesia

Is the only thing keeping you from scheduling your cosmetic procedure your fear of general anesthesia? You’re not alone. Let us help you demystify general anesthesia and its risks.

Don’t Lose Your Beauty Sleep Over Myths. Studies show that 30% of patients are more concerned about the effects of anesthesia that they are about the actual operation.

Many patients are aware of the risks associated with general anesthesia; what they don’t know is that general anesthesia is very safe. In fact, the mortality rate for general anesthesia administered for cosmetic procedures is very low.

According to the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery, the probability of an anesthesia-related fatal complication during a surgical procedure is 0.01 - 0.016 percent. While this is true, it is important to keep in mind that each patients reaction to general anesthesia will vary depending on a few factors.
 

Preparing For A Cosmetic Procedure

When contemplating a surgical procedure where general anesthesia is administered it is helpful to conduct personal research and compile a list of questions for the surgeon during the consultation process.

A few questions to consider include:

• Does the patient have poor overall health
• Is the patient mildly or severely obese?
• Has the patient been consistently or severely ill?
• How many years of age is the patient?
• Is the patient currently taking any prescribed medication?

The Effects Of General Anesthesia

Cosmetic surgery procedures are elective procedures that usually undergo planning and consultation prior to scheduling. This allows the surgeons to adequately assess each patient for medical risk factors and decide whether the candidate is eligible to move forward with surgery. During the day of surgery, both the anesthesiologist and your surgeon will take the time to discuss the process with you before putting you under.

Here’s what happens after anesthesia is administered:

• You are sedated - your body is in a deep sleep
• You are immobile - your body does not move while you are sedated
• You feel no pain - an effect of the anesthesia that prevents you from feeling pain
• You don’t remember the experience - because you are in a deep sleep and feel no pain, you have no memory of the experience.

Post-Anesthesia Feedback

The anesthesiologist is present for the duration of the procedure to monitor the patient’s oxygen intake, vitals, blood circulation and level of consciousness among other things, to ensure that the patient is stable at all times. 

Patients who have undergone anesthesia agree that:

• It’s not as scary as it may seem
• The process goes by very quickly
• The after effects are interesting, but not harmful

Contact Us

Reach out to your cosmetic surgeon for more information on how general anesthesia can affect you.