Anesthesia is a term used to mean the loss of consciousness and is utilized in the medical field to imply the prevention of a patient from feeling pain during various operations on one’s body. Anesthesia is an inevitable undertaking is surgical operations and other bodily contact endeavors that may cause unbearable pain to a patient. Anesthesia does not necessarily cause one to be unconscious in the modern context. It may be directed to a specific part of the body to cause numbness for the sake of an operation on that part. For dentists, for instance, anesthesia would be directed to the part on which the targeted tooth is rooted. There are various types of anesthesia that and their use is dependent on what the anesthetist wishes to accomplish. The type of anesthesia adopted is also dependent on the patient’s preference and level of nervousness. Local anesthesia is the one mostly adopted in dentistry procedures though there are instances when the general anesthesia becomes inevitable.
There are three major types of anesthesia which include local, regional, and general. Local anesthesia is undertaken on a specific part of the body and not meant to cause unconsciousness. Instead, the main purpose of this anesthesia is to cause numbness on the specific part that is ailing the patient. The anesthesia takes the form of an ointment, spray, drop, or injection which is utilized on the targeted part to prevent painful sensations that the patient may experience during operations on the specific body part (The Association of Anesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland, 2008). For dentists, the tooth and the gum are the most critical parts and this necessitates local anesthesia in many instances. Regional anesthesia is likened to the local one but relieve of pain is targeted on a larger part of the body than that targeted under local. The drug is injected around a major nerve or the spinal cord to constrain pain from a larger body part under operation. The numbing effect of regional anesthesia can last for eight to 12 hours and, therefore, relieves pain for sometime even after the operation (Central Vermont Medical Center, n.d). The duration of the numbing effect is, however, dependent on the dose. The patient is conscious throughout the operation but experiences no pain. Due to the long duration of the anesthetic effect, the patient may require no sedatives after the operation. General anesthesia causes unconsciousness to the whole body and one is unaware of the undertakings that take place during the operation. The administration of general anesthesia is either through an injection, a breathing mask, or both. The operation also involves the control of the breathing process through the insertion of an elastic tube down the trachea. The tube is inserted after the administration of anesthesia and removed when the patient awakens while breathing sufficiently (Central Vermont Medical Center, n.d). The tube may remain intact where the patient depicts insufficiency in the breathing system after the operation.
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Horace Wells, a dentist from Connecticut, was the first to use anesthesia and to expose its necessity. At first, he experienced the extraction of one wisdom tooth where nitrous oxide was used to relieve pain. His attempts to demonstrate the same with a patient bore no fruits as the patient cried out with pain (Catlay, Williamson & Hawkings, 2005). Nitrous oxide proved to be effective in several other instances and is still used today in minor operations. Despite the efficiency of nitrous oxide in anesthesia operations, its failure in the initial stages created curiosity among some medics. One of Wells’ pupils, William Morton, tried out ether in general anesthesia and the technique proved effective in public demonstration in Massachusetts. Anesthesia was, therefore, an invention of dentists with the first general anesthesia being successfully demonstrated in a dental operation with nitrous oxide and later ether as the agent of pain relief (Catlay et al., 2005). In the contemporary context, there are several advancements in anesthesia and how it works but nitrous oxide and ether remain major chemical elements of use in stimulating the numbing effect. In the contemporary context, dentists will in most cases use the local anesthesia as they are only concerned with the jaw where the infected tooth or teeth are rooted. The patient is, however, at liberty to opt for general anesthesia depending on the magnitude of the procedure. The local anesthesia solutions applied in most cases include lidocaine 2% plain, prilocaine 3% with felypressin, articaine 4% with epinephrine, or bupivacaine 0.25-0.5% plain (Catlay et al., 2005). In general, any mention of a –caine at the end of a drug implies that the drug is anesthetic.
Other than a move away from general anesthesia, conscious sedation is emphasized in the dentistry segment of the medical field. This enables the dentists or anesthetist to maintain verbal contact with the patient during the operation (Catlay et al., 2005) without any experiences of pain that would hinder the dentist’s endeavor. In such cases, it means that the dentist can tell the patient to move the mouth in a particular way to facilitate a smooth operation. The dentist can also hold a conversation with the patient while still engaging with the actions required on the teeth to make the process effective and successful. General anesthesia has not been halted in dental operations in entirety as it may be necessitated by various circumstances. A child whose movements cannot be controlled to make the operation possible may undergo general anesthesia as well as patients who depict high levels of nervousness on dental operations (Bahl, 2007). The implication is that local anesthesia, despite the contemporary advancements, are only a preserve of those who can persevere the operation without being frightened by what the dentist could be doing to their teeth. During a dental operation, anesthesia helps to prevent instances of discomfort during extraction by making the gums and teeth numb. Local anesthesia can either be topical or injectable. Topical anesthesia numbs the gum’s surface and is used to eliminate the stings or pricks that some patients experience when injected. Topical anesthetic is either sprayed, or applied with a swab or adhesive (American Dental Association, ADA, 2001). Injectable anesthetics are utilized in the prevention of pain in the mouth during dental operations. Its operation is founded on the blockage of nerve endings and numbing of mouth tissues to prevent sensations that may hinder a smooth operation. Injectable anesthetic is utilized in teeth restoration, treatment of tooth canal defects or gum incidences, preparation of teeth crown, and extraction of teeth (ADA, 2001). Nitrous oxide was the first chemical used in dental anesthesia operations but was found insufficient for major surgeries. This led to the adoption of diethyl ether in combination with chloroform to enhance the anesthetic effect. In essence, nitrous oxide may be used plainly when the procedure is simple. Diethyl ether and chloroform are mostly used in long and complicated procedures. Nitrous oxide stability at room temperature makes it the most preferable chemical and is, therefore, availed in almost every anesthetic undertaking (Sneader, 2005). Sodium hydroxide is also used in some instances to improve the numbing effect.
Conclusion
The idea of anesthetizing a patient is common, particularly in the contemporary context. When it comes to dental operations, the dentists want to prevent instances of pain that may hinder the treatment process. Again, anesthesia emerges as a solution in dealing with a nervous patient, particularly during the extraction or restoration of a tooth or teeth. Anesthesia is also critical for children whose movements cannot be controlled during an operation. It is emerges as the most effective option in creating a relaxed environment for both the patient and the dentist to accomplish the intended outcomes. Anesthesia can be local, regional, or general. Local anesthesia is the most common in dentistry as it involves a small part of the body, such as the gum and the tooth. Where the entire mouth is significant, the anesthesia is still categorized under local as there is no major nerve targeted in the utilization of anesthesia. As such, conscious sedation becomes the appropriate term in dentistry anesthesia as the patient is aware of all the occurrences without painful experiences. The chemical component that stimulates numbness as part of the anesthetic endeavor is nitrous oxide. Sodium hydroxide has also been utilized in reinforcing the numbing effect. For complicated and long-lasting procedures, diethyl ether and chloroform become the most efficient options for use.
References
American Dental Association (2001). Anesthesia for the dental visit. JADA, 132, 703.
Bahl, R. (2007). Local anesthesia in dentistry. Anesth Prog, 51, 138-142.
Catlay, K., Williamson, S. & Hawkings, J. (2005). Anesthesia for dentistry. Continuing Education in Anesthesia. Clinical Care & Pain, 5 (3), 71-75.
Central Vermont Medical Center (n.d.). Types of anesthesia. Retrieved from https://www.cvmc.org on 11/8/2017.
Sneader, W. (2005). Drug discovery- a history. In Part 1: Legacy of the past: Systematic medicine . John Wiley & Sons.
The Association of Anesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland (2008). Anesthesia explained. The Royal College of Anesthetists. Retrieved from https://www.aagbi.org on 11/8/2017.
