Safe local anesthesia

Local anesthesia is not in vain called the safest kind of anesthesia. It is this technique of anesthesia that is used most often in combination with other types of anesthesia, as well as in isolation from all. What is it and why is it so widely used?

Local anesthesia is the artificial triggering of temporary interruption of sensitivity in a specific area of the operating field with the help of chemical and physical agents. Physical methods, and this compression and cooling, have almost gone down in history, but chemical ones have spread widely and continue to improve. Its synonyms are both "local anesthesia" and local anesthesia.

Usually, its use is required during diagnostic tests or small operations, for example, in the treatment of teeth, dissection of abscesses and so on. And local anesthesia is used in the presence of some contraindications to general anesthesia. The use of local anesthesia in children's practice is not very popular, but some of its types are included in the scheme of combined anesthesia during surgery and in the postoperative period.

To conduct anesthesia, it is necessary to inject the local anesthetic into the anatomical structures of the skin area where the operation will be performed. For injections, thin needles are used, because of this they are very painful. The injections are done fairly superficially, although in some cases the medicine needs to be injected more deeply.

There are some methods of local anesthesia that can be grouped into the following types:

• Terminal (contact) anesthesia is the most known and simple way to numb the mucous membranes. Anesthetic solution (aeration, drops, etc.) directly contacts the mucous membranes. It is used in thoracic surgery, anesthesiology and otorhinolaryngology;
• Infiltration anesthesia is a tight layered infiltration of soft tissues with a weak solution of anesthetic in the operation area. For this type of anesthesia, 0.5-1.5% mepivacaine solution, 0.25-0.5% lidocaine solution and 0.25% trimecaine solution are used;
• Regional anesthesia - the most promising method, which is characterized by such features:

- The anesthetic is inserted at some distance from the operation area;

- Small volumes of anesthetics cover an extensive area of the body with anesthesia;

- the quality of anesthesia directly depends on a good knowledge of the technique of anesthesia and anatomy;

Regional anesthesia is divided into:

- intravenous;

- intraosseous;

- peripheral and central conductor;

- electroacupuncture.

Local anesthesia in dentistry has been and remains the main method of anesthesia, the effectiveness of which depends on the patient's condition, the structure of his upper and lower jaw, the technique of anesthesia, and the anesthetics used. The main criterion for choosing an anesthetic drug is its safety, effectiveness, individual characteristics of the patient and the nature of his intervention. And the effectiveness of the anesthetic is directly related to the value of the dissociation constant, the percentage of concentration of the vasoconstrictor and anesthetic, the molecular basis, the separation coefficient, and the degrees of drug diffusion into the nerve fibers.

Local anesthesia in surgery is no less important than in dental practice. The most commonly used medication in this case is novocaine in the form of 0.25-0.5%, and extremely rarely 1-2% of physiological saline. Such solutions for anesthesia are prepared directly on the day of surgery, because if you cook them in advance, novocain will lose all its analgesic properties.

Before proceeding with local anesthesia, it is worth familiarizing yourself with the list of its contraindications, and this:

• Damage to tissues - marked inflammation, rough scars or bleeding;
• Mental disorders of the patient;
• Intolerance to anesthetics.

And finally, it is worth noting that local anesthesia has some obvious advantages. These include:

• Possibility of execution without expensive apparatuses and tools, as well as in any conditions;
• Minimal impact on the functioning of all body systems;
• Reliable blockage of all pain impulses.

And, of course, the shortcomings of the "pure form" of local anesthesia are also present. The main ones are the possibility of serious complications, the inability to control the important functions of the body and the preservation of consciousness, resulting in the possible receipt of a mental trauma.