24. Anaesthetics Flashcards
WHat are the 2 types of anaesthesia?
General and local
What are the 2 types of anaesthesia used for general?
- inhalation (volatile)
- Intravenous
what is the type of local anaesthetic?
regional
Define conscious sedation.
- Conscious sedation: use of small amounts of anaesthetic or benzodiazepines to produce a ‘sleepy-like’ state. (Maintain verbal contact but feel comfortable)
what are the usual steps in anaesthetics?
- Premedication (Hypnotic-benzodiazepine).
- Induction (sleep) (usually intravenous but may be inhalational (needle phobics)).
- Intraoperative analgesia (usually an opioid e.g. fentanyl).
- Muscle paralysis-facilitate intubation/ventilation/stillness.
- Maintenance (typically inhalational).
- Reversal of muscle paralysis and recovery which includes postoperative analgesia (opioid/NSAID/paracetamol).
- Provision for PONV
Give examples of volatile anaesthetics.
- Nitrous oxide
- Desflurane
- Sevoflurane
- Isoflurane
- Enflurane
- Halothane
Give examples of IV anaesthetics.
- Propofol
- Barbiturates
- Etomidate
- Ketamine
What are the range of effects on the CNS produced during general anaesthesia described by?
Guedel’s signs
What are the stages of Guedel’s signs?
- Stage 1: analgesia and consciousness
- Stage 2: unconscious, breathing erratic but delirium could occur, leading to an excitement phase.
- Stage 3: surgical anaesthesia, with four levels describing increasing depth until breathing weak.
- Stage 4: respiratory paralysis and death.
What is anaesthesia a combination of?
- Analgesia
- Hypnosis (loss of consciousness)
- Depression of spinal reflexes
- Muscle relaxation (insensibility and immobility)
As anaesthetic concentration rises, what is lost?
- memory
- consciousness
- movement
- cardiovascular response
Define potency.
Concentrational dose range, over which a drug produces its effects
What is MAC?
Minimum Alveolar Concentration
Define MAC.
[Alveolar] at which 50% of subjects fail to move to surgical stimulus (unpremedicated breathing O2/air)
Are higher or lower value MACs more potent?
A lower MAC value represents a more potent volatile anesthetic
When is a volatile anaesthetic at equilibrium?
[alveolar] = [spinal cord]
WHat is the anatomical substrate for MAC?
Spinal cord
What factor affects induction and recovery?
Partition coefficients (solubility):
• Blood:Gas partition (in the blood)
• Oil:Gas partition (in fat)
What is the blood/gas partition coefficient?
Reflects solubility of the volatile agent in blood and is defined as the ratio of its concentration in blood to alveolar gas when their partial pressures are in equilibrium
WHat does a higher blood:gas partition indicate?
More soluble: leads to greater uptake by the pulmonary circulation, but a slower increase in alveolar partial pressure of the agent and therefore more prolonged induction and recovery from anaesthesia