Conduction anesthesia

In the Conduction anesthesia it is a special anesthetic procedure. It is used to switch off certain nerves or nerve branches.

What is conduction anesthesia?

A conduction anesthesia is understood to be an anesthetic procedure in which the doctor subjects specific nerves or nerve branches to anesthesia.

A conduction anesthesia is understood to be an anesthetic procedure in which the doctor subjects specific nerves or nerve branches to anesthesia. He uses local anesthetics, which are used to numb the skin locally. The central anesthesia is counted among the procedures of the regional anesthesia. The method is also used in dentistry.

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By administering anesthetics close to nerves, the transmission of painful impulses in the direction of afferent nerve fibers can be prevented. In medicine, a distinction is made between peripheral and spinal cord-related procedures.

Function, effect & goals

Circuit anesthesia is usually carried out by an anesthetist. He works with the doctor who carries out the actual surgical procedure. Both peripheral and regional anesthesia procedures close to the spinal cord can be used. A peripheral procedure is used when individual nerves or even a nerve plexus are specifically blocked.

The numbed nerves are responsible for supplying a certain part of the body. These places are searched for under the control of ultrasound or a nerve stimulator. The anesthesia takes place through the use of a local anesthetic, which is injected with a cannula. Control via ultrasound has proven itself in recent years and is now considered the standard. The failure of the blockages by the ultrasonic control is significantly lower. The same applies to injuries to blood vessels.

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This form of conduction anesthesia is often used on the arm. This involves blocking the brachial plexus or individual nerves in the fingers or hands. But the leg can also be subjected to conduction anesthesia. Common areas of application are blockages of the sacral plexus, the lumbar plexus, the obturator nerve and the femoral nerve. Ophthalmology uses the procedure in the context of intraocular interventions. However, dentistry is the most common area of ​​central anesthesia. There it serves primarily to block the mandibular nerve. However, other nerves can also be subjected to conduction anesthesia.

In medicine, a spinal cord procedure is understood to mean epidural anesthesia or epidural anesthesia and spiral anesthesia. With these methods, the anesthetic acts on the nerve roots, which exit in the spinal cord. As part of the spiral anesthesia, the anesthetist punctures the liquor space at the level of the nerve roots. The injected drugs quickly numb the lower part of the body. Usually this is a single injection. During epidural anesthesia, a catheter is pushed into the epidural space. In this way, the local anesthetic can act mainly outside the meninges on the spiral nerves that extend from the spinal cord.

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With block anesthesia, the anesthetist creates smaller depots of the local anesthetic, which has a long-term effect. He injects these depots into the vicinity of the exit points of the sensitive nerves. The doctor uses a nerve stimulator to locate the right spots. This sends out electrical surges that are so low that they do not cause pain. If the needle of the stimulator is in direct proximity to the nerve, this will cause twitching of the affected hand or foot. After determining this point, the anesthetist can inject the appropriate local anesthetic. It takes about 10 to 20 minutes until the nerve supply area of ​​the affected part of the body no longer feels any sensations. After the muscles have slackened, the surgical intervention begins.

Patients who are afraid of the procedure can also receive sleeping pills. Although this is not as effective as general anesthesia, the patient usually does not notice the operation.

Circuit anesthesia is always used when it is necessary to numb large parts of the body such as an arm or a leg without having to use general anesthesia. This form of regional anesthesia is often used on arms or legs. But even small interventions on the knee or foot, such as removing varicose veins or dental treatments, are possible with a conduction anesthesia. The same applies to operations on the face, eyes or the male penis.

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Risks, side effects & dangers

After the conduction anesthesia, the anesthesia of the corresponding part of the body continues for a while. This means that the patient must behave carefully, as the pain as a warning signal temporarily disappears. Once the organism has broken down the anesthetic, it can react normally to the stimuli again.

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Various side effects are possible with block anesthesia. This includes, for example, incomplete effectiveness of the anesthetic. In such cases the anesthetic must be repeated. In addition, there may be swelling, foreign body sensations, problems speaking or swallowing, pain at the puncture site, lightning-like pain or abnormal sensations when touching the nerves or bruising. Infections through the penetration of germs are also conceivable, but can usually be avoided through consistent hygiene measures. Because the needle tips that are used in conduction anesthesia are mostly beveled and blunt, the patient need not be afraid of nerve damage.

A direct contact of the nerve with the needle would also immediately make itself felt as pain. The injected narcotics are also not dangerous with local anesthesia, as the body quickly breaks down their substances and the functionality of the nerve is completely restored.