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Lakeland
Veterinary Hospital
"Caring for pets and the people who love them" |
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~Anesthesia and Monitoring~
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| Anesthesia is necessary to provide restraint and to control pain for many medical and nearly all surgical procedures that we perform on pets. A variety of anesthetic protocols are employed depending on the procedure being performed. | |
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| General Anesthesia: General anesthesia (isoflurane) allows us to perform major surgeries without pain and while in a deep sleep. Anesthesia is induced with injectable medications, and then maintained by a gas delivered from the anesthetic machine through a tube placed in the patient’s trachea. Oxygen is supplied throughout the procedure by the same machine. The depth and duration of anesthesia are controlled by adjustments made to the anesthetic machine. For most procedures that require a general anesthetic, the patient will need to remain over night for complete recovery and rest. Our hospital has 24 hour staffing so that our patients are never alone. | |
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| Patient Monitoring: During general anesthesia, our patients are monitored closely by the surgical team. To assist them in monitoring your pet, we employ equipment that displays heart and respiratory rates, oxygen content of the blood, and for many procedures, an electrocardiogram (ECG). This continual monitoring allows us to intervene quickly in the unlikely event of an anesthetic related complication, helping to ensure the safety of your pet. | |
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| Local Anesthesia: Local anesthesia involves injecting a medication into an area (usually the skin) to desensitize or “freeze” it. Local anesthesia is used to facilitate the removal of small skin growths or to suture small skin lacerations without the pet feeling any discomfort. Because pets will rarely remain still for a procedure, local anesthesia is often used in conjunction with mild sedation. Local anesthesia is often employed with general anesthesia for extended pain control following such procedures as joint surgeries, cat declaws, and dental extractions. | |
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| Spinal Anesthesia: In our practice, spinal anesthesia is used in conjunction with general anesthesia for deep pain control in orthopedic procedures. This allows us to maintain the pet in a lighter plane of anesthesia, thereby increasing its safety. | |
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| Sedation/Tranquilization: Sometimes it is necessary to calm a nervous animal to examine him or to perform a minor procedure. Modern sedatives provide excellent restraint and pain management for short procedures, while maintaining an excellent margin of safety. Some sedatives can be reversed with an additional medication, allowing for quick recovery if needed. We employ various sedatives for procedures such as x-ray, ear cleanings, wound treatments, removal of porcupine quills, and many more. Sedation allows us to perform these procedures more quickly and effectively, and without pain or stress to your pet. | |