Pain

Pain management is also the responsibility or the Anaesthetist. This is individualised to the patients needs, based on the patient characteristics, and surgery type. Some pain after surgery is normal, however the goal is to avoid severe pain at all times. The Anaesthetist will prescribe a range of medications used to minimise pain, both in hospital and after discharge from hospital. If there are any shortfalls in pain management, the anaesthetist will prescribe additional medication, and if required attend the hospital to optimise pain management.

Dr Dennis Millard will also perform nerve blocks wherever possible, which generally give pain relief for 12 – 72hours, depending on the type of nerve block or infusion. This greatly improves patient satisfaction and pain relief, compared to taking medications alone.

Nausea and Vomiting

Post Operative Nausea and Vomiting (PONV) are common issues after surgery and anaesthesia, and great care will be applied to minimise the chance of this happening to you. Patients are all assessed for their risk of PONV, and different medications and anaesthetic types will be used to minimise this risk. The anaesthetist will give you anti-PONV medication during the anaesthetic, and often prescribe additional medication for use following surgery (if required).

In some situations, Total Intravenous Anaesthesia (TIVA) is used to minimise the PONV risk, however this is not always an option.

Fluid

Anaesthetists will prescribe IV fluids for patients to receive following surgery and aim to have patients returning to normal function as soon as possible. This includes swapping IV fluid to oral fluid early, encouraging early eating to restore gut function, and early rehabilitation and mobilisation wherever possible.

Patients need to pass urine and hold down food and water before being discharged from hospital.

Drowsiness and Fatigue

It is common to be fatigued or drowsy following an operation. This is caused by both the surgery and tissue damage, and due to some of the anaesthetic medications. You must stay with a responsible adult for the night following surgery, and not make important decisions, drive or operate any machinery for 24hours.

Sore Throat

It is common to have a sore throat after surgery from the breathing tube which is used to deliver oxygen by the anaesthetist during the anaesthetic.

Rare complications of anaesthesia

Australia has the best anaesthesia safety records, and the best anaesthetic training in the world, so you can proceed with confidence knowing that you have an Australian trained Specialist Anaesthetist looking after you. It takes an average of 15years in Australia from the beginning of medical training, until a Doctor can qualify as an Anaesthetic Specialist.

It it important to be informed about the rare complications of anaesthesia, however it is extremely unlikely these should occur. To put the figures into context;

– 1 in 10,000 risk of developing a complication, means you would have to have an anaesthetic every single day for over 27years, for that complication to occur once.

Rare risks (1:1,000 – 1:100,000) include

– Damage to teeth

– Nerve injury

– Damage to eyes

– Waking up feeling weak or ‘paralysed’

– Aspiration (vomiting, and the vomitus landing in the lungs)

– Anaphylaxis (severe allergy)

– Inability to pass the breathing tube for a patient

– Being ‘aware’ during surgery

Your Anaesthetist will always take extreme caution in order to minimise the risk of developing any of these complications. If you are concerned about any of these risks please discuss this with your Anaesthetist.