Anaesthetic awareness

When you are undergoing surgery or a major procedure, there is often the need to have anesthetic administered to make the surgery or procedure more tolerable.

When a patient has not been given anesthetics properly they can become consciousness during the surgery. In these cases the paralyzing qualities of anesthetics will render the patient unable to move and whilst being fully aware of their surroundings and the pain. This is a situation where after the operation the patient can remember the whole surgery.  There are five situations where a deep anesthetic may not be used and the patient could come-to during the procedure.

One surgery where there is a risk of becoming aware during the procedure is cardiac procedures.  This is because a weaker dose of anesthetic is gives so as to not affect the stability of the heart during the procedure. 

There is a risk for anesthetic awareness in trauma.  This is because the medical staff are working fast to get the patient stable and cannot always wait for the anesthetics to fully kick in. 

Another type of anesthetic awareness surgery risk is during wisdom teeth removal.  This is because it is not a major surgery.

Emergency cesarean sections where there is a rush to delivery the baby to protect the lives of both the mother and child can be cases of anesthetic awareness.

Plastic surgery where the doctor needs to be able to monitor the heart rate of the patient can result in anesthetic awareness.

All cases of anesthetic awareness can cause permanent mental damage to the patient.