One of the most common concerns I address in practice is pet parents' concerns regarding anesthesia. From spay/neuter to dentistry to wound care to certain emergencies, each of us will likely face an anesthetic procedure with our pet. I would like to ease your mind about anesthesia in animals, and also to encourage you to talk with your veterinarian about his/her protocols and any questions you may have.
Anesthesia simply means that we are placing your pet in a pain-free, stress-free state to allow for a procedure or treatment to be performed that would not typically be as safe or as tolerated when awake. General anesthesia is a multistep process, including "pre-medication," "induction," and "maintenance." Pre-medication is a mild tranquilizer/sedative given ahead of the scheduled surgery time. It usually includes pain relief, which allows us to offset pain before it begins. This medication will relax your pet, but will not cause him/her to become unconscious. By relaxing your pet ahead of time, we are able to use smaller doses of anesthetic medication.
Induction will cause your pet to go to sleep, and allow for us to proceed with providing anesthesia by gas inhalation. During induction, we place an endotracheal tube to allow access to the airway. Anesthetic gas is delivered through this tube. We also apply our monitoring equipment during this phase.
Maintenance involves gas anesthesia to keep your pet at a steady, manageable level of unconsciousness for the duration of his/her procedure. Using the protocol outlined above, we are able to reduce the amount of gas necessary to produce this level of anesthesia. Anesthetic gas leaves the system quickly as oxygen is breathed in when the procedure is completed.
As you can imagine, there are many different drugs and protocols available for the process of anesthesia. When choosing a protocol for your pet, we take into account his/her age and general health, the length and degree of the procedure, as well as past experiences the pet has had with anesthesia or sedation.
When asked: 'Is anesthesia safe for my pet?' my answer is: 'We need more information.' Your veterinarian can screen for certain conditions based on a comprehensive physical exam. However, in order to better understand how anesthesia will affect your pet, we need to know more about the health of his/her organs, available blood supply, etc. For this reason, we recommend, or sometimes require blood work prior to any anesthetic or surgical procedure. We want to know that the kidneys and liver can tolerate the medications we will use, that our patient is not fighting an infection, is not anemic, and is able to clot blood. Based on the information we gather, we can determine which protocol is safest for your pet. Sometimes, blood work shows a reason for the procedure to be postponed.
Once it is determined that anesthesia and surgery are safe based on exam and blood work, there are a few additional precautions we can take to keep your pet safe during his/her procedure, such as placement of an IV catheter and monitoring throughout surgery and recovery. An IV (Intravenous catheter) gives us access to the circulatory system. Not only are anesthetic, antibiotic, and pain medications delivered through the IV, but it also allows access for delivery of emergency medications should they be needed. We can also deliver Intravenous fluids to your pet. Receiving fluids during anesthesia improves blood pressure and hydration during anesthesia. This aids in a faster recovery time.
Monitoring includes measuring heart rate, EKG, respiratory rate, oxygenation status, body temperature, blood pressure, and carbon dioxide output (an additional respiratory component). Knowing this information allows us to adjust settings and administer additional treatments as needed to keep your pet safely asleep, pain-free, and comfortable.
When it comes to anesthesia, our knowledge and technique have progressed through the years. Newer protocols have been studied, and equipment has been modified for use in animals. We know that your special pet means a great deal to you; they mean an awful lot to us, too. Your veterinarian wants you to feel comfortable with his/her recommendations and the treatment of your pet. Always ask questions and be informed about your pet's procedure.