Anaesthesia

Anaesthesia  is  a  state  of  controlled  reversible  loss  of  consciousness  usually  accompanied  by  analgesia,  muscle  relaxation,  amnesia  and  areflexia.  It  is  usually  induced  for  the  purpose  of  facilitating surgery and other therapeutic or diagnostic procedures. 

Anaesthesia may be achieved with either: 

• Regional anaesthesia alone e.g. spinal/epidural anaesthesia, arm block 
• General anaesthesia 
• A combination of regional and general anaesthesia 
• Regional anaesthesia with sedation 
• Local anaesthesia through topical application/spray or infiltration of local anaesthetics 

Note 

• Anesthetic medicines and sedatives MUST be provided by medical practitioners who are properly trained and have appropriate experience with their use 
• Medicines  and  equipment  for  resuscitation  should  be  immediately  available  whenever general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation is administered.