Anesthesia may be provided by a combination of board certified physicians.
The physicians included in this group are:
- Barbara Brar, M.D.
- Gary Baker, M.D.
- David Baloga, M.D.
- Jon Bennett, D.O.
- Kaye Dabbs-Moyer, M.D.
- Kevin Dang, M.D.
- Melisa Erick, M.D.
- Mukesh, Gupta, M.D.
- Richard Harris, M.D.
- David Hirst, M.D.
- Stephen Kouri, M.D.
- Anthony Nelson, M.D.
- Atlanta Olito, D.O.
- Lawrence Robinson, M.D.
- Shankar Sundram, M.D.
- Ngoc Trong, M.D.
Anesthesia keeps you pain free during durgery. You can lose feeling or sensation during the operation with or without loss of consciousness. Your surgeon and your anethsiologist will discuss the type of anesthesia that is best suited for you and your procedure.
The types of anesthesia provided range from local, Monitored Anesthesia Care (MAC), sedation, regional, and general anesthesia.
Local Anesthesia – Patients remain awake, but the part of the body that wil be operated on is made numb so you won’t feel pain. You may still feel touching or some pressure, but should not experience pain. This loss of pain sensation is produced by directly injecting into the area to be treated with a numbing medication (Local anesthetic). An example would be, local anesthesia is provided to most people who visit their dentist for a procedure.
Monitored Anesthesia Care (MAC) – The patient will be given intravenous (IV) sedation by an anesthesiologist in conjunction with a local anesthestic (by your physician) to keep you comfortable during the procdure. The sedation wears off quickly but may leave a patient with little or no memory of the surgery.
Sedation – The patient will be given intravenous (IV) medication by a registered nurse, under the direction of your physician, sometimes in conjunction with a local anesthestic (by your physician). The sedation wears off quickly but may leave a patient with little or no memory of the procedure.
Regional – (Nerve blocks) – this involves numbing an arm, leg or lower half of the body with local anesthetic. Often times these blocks are performed by the anesthesiologist in conjunction with the physician injecting a local anesthetic into the operative area. An anesthesiologist will often use IV sedation to keep the patient comfortable during the procedure. The sedation wears off quickly but may leave the patient with limited or no memory of the procdure.
General Anesthesia – Patients are asleep and their whole bodies are made unaware of pain. Anesthesia is given by IV injection of anesthetic medications and/or inhalation of anesthetic gases. Patients may have an airway or breathing tube inserted during the procedure to assist breathing. The tube is placed after the patient falls asleep and is removed before the patient wakes up.
Side effects of anesthesia – Depending upon the type of anesthesia, you may experience a mild sore throat, mild nausea, headache, drowsiness or fatigue after a procedure. Some patients do not experience any side effects. Talk to your anesthesiologist about what to expect.