HOuston Mobile Anesthesia

 Anesthesia terminology can be rather confusing.  We use the types of agents, routes of administration, anesthesia techniques, and level of sedation interchangeably to describe types of anesthesia that patients received; thus, it is often difficult for patients to understand what one is referring to.

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What are the levels of sedation/analgesia?  (Click on link for detailed explanation)

Levels of sedation are best described as a continuum of depth of analgesia. 

• Minimal Sedation/Anxiolysis

• Moderate Sedation/Conscious Sedation

• Deep Sedation

• General Anesthesia

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Some will use types of agents and routes of adminstration to describe the types of anesthesia that patients are receiving.  What are the types of agents and routes of administration that can help achieve different levels of sedation/analgesia?   

Local Anesthestic Injections(such as lidocaine, mepivacaine, or bupivacaine)-  commonly referred as "local"; this type of agents is used to inject body tissues around nerves to achieve analgesia/numbness

Nitrous oxide (N.O.)-  commonly "nitrous" or "laughing gas";  this agent is used in dental offices with patients breathing from a nasal device or in operating room along with other inhalational agents (see below) to achieve a level of sedation

Oral medications-  or "oral sedation"; medications are administered by mouth to achieve a level of sedation

Intramuscular injection- or "dart" or "shot";  medications are injected into intramuscular tissue to achieve a level of sedation

Intravenous medications- or "IV sedation"; medications are administered by IV to achieve a level of sedation

Inhalational agents-  also known as "gases"; use of anesthetic gases is delivered through airway devices (endotracheal intubating tubes, or LMAs) by a mechanical ventilator equipped with inhalational vaporizers to achieve a level of sedation.

 

What is Monitored Anesthesia Care(or MAC)?

Monitored Anesthesia Care(or MAC) describes a specific service performed by a qualified anesthesia provider, for a diagnostic or therapeutic procedure.  It allows anesthesia providers to move to deeper depth of sedation-from moderate sedation to deep sedation and even general anesthesia.  MAC does not describe the continuum of depth of analgesia.

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What is Total Intravenous(IV) Anesthesia (TIVA)?

Total IV anesthesia (TIVA) is a specific technique of general anesthesia.  As the name indicates, only IV agents are used to achieve the depth of general anesthesia.

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Who are board certified anesthesiologists?  Why are board certified anesthesiologists are used to deliver anesthesia in all settings?

Board certified anesthesiologists are medical doctors who underwent at least 4 years of residency training in anesthesia and are certified by the American Board of Anesthesiologists through written and oral examinations.  We are trained to perform in all clinical scenarios.

According American Society of Anesthesiologists, it is difficult to predict how individual patient will respond under sedation.  Because patients may become deeper than the level of sedation intended, providers must be able to handle patients in all levels of sedation-from moderate sedation to general anesthesia.  As board certified anesthesiologist, we are adequately trained to handle these scenarios.

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