Anesthesia

Our anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists are responsible for your safety and for your comfort during surgery. Your anesthesiologist will work with you and with your surgeon to plan the best type of anesthesia for you.

Before surgery, your anesthesiologist will discuss your medical history, describe your options with their benefits and risks, answer questions from you or from your family, and ask you to sign a consent form for anesthesia. This is separate from your consent for surgery.

Described below are two types of anesthesia used for joint replacement surgery. Both are safe and effective.
A member of the Anesthesia Department will be with you at all times in the operating room.

General anesthesia

With general anesthesia, you are completely unconscious and asleep during surgery. Medications to begin anesthesia are given intravenously (IV) through a vein. Unconsciousness is maintained using both IV medication and medications you breathe in through a mask.

Pain or discomfort from your surgery is managed even before your operation begins, with a combination of medication you take before your anesthesia is started and IV medications given before you wake up. If needed, additional pain medication is available in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU), also called the recovery room.

Some common side effects of general anesthesia include sleepiness, nausea with or without vomiting, and sore throat. You will be given
medication to help prevent nausea.

Spinal Anesthesia

Spinal anesthesia involves medication injected into your back through a needle to make your body numb from the waist down. This procedure is performed in the operating room after you are sedated with intravenous medication.

When the spinal anesthetic is beginning to take effect, before surgery begins, a stronger sedative is given through your IV to make you even more relaxed and sleepy. Most patients remember little if anything about their time in the operating room. The few who do occasionally feel pressure or hear talking or equipment sounds during surgery are not bothered by it.

You are able to communicate with your anesthesia team about anything that you need during the procedure. You are more likely to be clear-headed sooner and less likely to have nausea and vomiting after spinal anesthesia, partly due to the fact that you will require less pain medication. You will remain in the PACU until your legs move normally, which usually happens within two hours after surgery ends.