Should you panic when you hear the word “anesthesia”? Should you be afraid? general anesthesia, and if so, what is its danger to the child? What could be the consequences of such anesthesia? Let's find out.

General anesthesia for a child

The baby will undergo surgery under general anesthesia. But just the thought of anesthesia makes you shiver. This happens to many parents. And all because a lot of rumors and conjectures are swarming around general anesthesia. It's time to find out once and for all which of this is true and which is an absolute myth.

What are the dangers of general anesthesia for a child?

Many parents believe that general anesthesia is very dangerous for a child, but they don’t know why. The main fear is that the baby will not wake up after surgery. Such cases do occur - in one situation out of a hundred. And as a rule, death is in no way connected with anesthesia. In the vast majority of such cases, death occurs as a result of the operation itself.

So what is the danger of general anesthesia for a child? We can talk about the negative only in the context of contraindications. The doctor is obliged to analyze them thoroughly. And only after analysis the doctor makes a decision about whether there is an urgent need for general anesthesia or not. As a rule, extensive anesthesia is never prescribed unnecessarily. Especially for children.

To perform general anesthesia, the doctor mandatory must obtain parental permission. But before you refuse him this, think about it. Many operations on the younger generation are performed under general anesthesia. This is necessary in order to avoid psycho-emotional consequences.

The main purpose of anesthesia is to save the child from having to attend his own operation.

Local anesthesia will allow the baby to see blood, open wounds and much more unsightly. How this will affect the fragile psyche is difficult to predict.

Consequences of general anesthesia for children

General anesthesia sometimes entails unpleasant consequences for children. The attending physician will definitely warn you about them before the operation. Based on this information, mom and dad will decide whether extensive anesthesia is necessary.

How does general anesthesia affect a child? How can it manifest itself after surgery?

• Headache,
• dizziness,
• panic attacks,
• memory loss,
• convulsions,
• heart failure,
• kidney problems and liver problems.

All of the listed consequences sometimes have no place at all in the life of a small patient. Some people experience short-term headache. Some people experience seizures a few days after surgery calf muscles. This does not mean that all of the listed conditions will “attack” the child without fail and en masse, no. These are just possible consequences of extensive anesthesia. They may not exist at all. This is why it is so important to trust your doctor. Hardly good specialist will advise the child on what is not necessary. And if there is a need, then it is probably much more acute than all the consequences combined.

Surgery under general anesthesia in a person of any age causes anxiety. Adults recover from anesthesia in different ways - some recover from the procedure easily, while others recover poorly, taking a very long time to recover. Children, in addition to a general impairment of well-being, are not aware of what is happening and cannot adequately assess the situation, so surgery under general anesthesia can become very stressful. Parents worry about what consequences anesthesia will entail, how this will affect the child’s well-being and behavior, and what care the children will need after waking up.

Recovery period after surgery under general anesthesia

A little about anesthesia

Modern anesthesia drugs have virtually no effect negative influence on the child and are quickly eliminated from the body, which provides an easy recovery period after general anesthesia. In most cases, they are used for anesthesia in children. inhalation methods injection of anesthetic - they are absorbed into the blood in minimum concentration and are excreted unchanged by the respiratory system.

Helping your baby after recovery from anesthesia

Recovery from anesthesia occurs under the strict supervision of an anesthesiologist and begins immediately after stopping the administration of the anesthetic. The specialist closely monitors the child’s vital signs, assessing the effectiveness of breathing movements, level blood pressure and the number of heartbeats. After making sure that the patient’s condition is stable, he is transferred to the general ward. It is advisable that the parents wait in the child’s room - the unpleasant state after anesthesia usually frightens children, and the presence loved one will help you calm down. In the first hours after waking up, the baby is lethargic, lethargic, and his speech may be slurred.

Girl in the ward after surgery

When using modern drugs, their elimination period lasts no more than 2 hours. At this stage, the following may be of concern: unpleasant symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, dizziness, pain in the surgical area, elevated temperature. Each of these symptoms can be relieved by taking certain measures.

• Nausea and vomiting are common side effects of general anesthesia. It has been noted that the likelihood of vomiting is associated with blood loss - with extensive bleeding, the patient vomits in very rare cases. If a child has nausea, it is not recommended to eat for the first 6-10 hours after surgery; liquid can be taken in small quantities so as not to provoke a new attack of vomiting. As a rule, relief occurs a few hours after recovery from anesthesia. If the child's condition has deteriorated significantly and vomiting does not bring relief, you can ask the nurse to give an injection of an antiemetic drug.
• Dizziness and weakness are the body’s natural reaction to anesthesia in the first hours after waking up. It takes some time to recover and it will be better if the child sleeps for a few hours. If for one reason or another sleep is impossible, you can distract your baby with cartoons, a favorite toy, an interesting book or a fairy tale.
• Trembling is a consequence of impaired thermoregulation. It is recommended to arrange a warm blanket in advance to help keep your child warm.
• An increase in temperature is usually observed on the first day after surgery. This reaction of the body is considered normal when the values ​​do not exceed subfebrile levels. An elevated temperature a few days after surgery suggests the development of complications and requires additional examination.

A nurse measures a girl's temperature after surgery

General anesthesia has the greatest impact on babies under one year of age. Infants have developed a clear diet and sleep schedule, which becomes confused after anesthesia - children can confuse day and night, staying awake at night. In this case, only patience will help - after a few days or weeks the baby will return to his usual routine on his own.

In rare cases, parents observe that their child “fell into childhood,” that is, he began to perform actions that are not typical for his age. You don’t have to worry about this; most likely, this is a temporary phenomenon and will go away on its own.

Some children, after surgery using general anesthesia, sleep poorly, are capricious, and refuse to eat. Some rituals that should be performed every day before bed can help your child fall asleep. This could be a glass of warm milk, interesting fairy tales or a relaxing massage. You should limit your TV viewing - frequent changes of pictures provoke agitation nervous system, even the most familiar harmless cartoons can increase sleep disturbances.

Feeding a child after anesthesia

If the baby feels well, sleeps well, and is not bothered by fever, nausea or vomiting, then doctors advise returning to normal life as soon as possible. Early patient activation helps rapid recovery and prevention of development postoperative complications. After 5-6 hours, doctors may allow your child to eat. The food should be light - it could be vegetable soup, jelly with crackers or toast, porridge with water. Infants receive mother's breasts or formula milk.

In the absence of vomiting, drinking plenty of fluids will help you recover quickly. Pure still water, compotes, fruit drinks, and teas are most suitable. Juices and sweet carbonated drinks are not recommended for frequent drinking as they contain large amounts of sugar.

Proper psychological preparation, the presence of loved ones and compliance with all doctor’s recommendations will help the child survive the postoperative period more easily. The child’s body has the ability to recover quickly, and within a few days the baby will feel much better than on the first day after surgery.

Without anesthesia (general anesthesia), there would be no surgery, especially for children. IN Lately general anesthesia in children is used not only for complex surgical interventions, but also during a number of examinations, and even during the treatment of caries in dentistry. How justified is this approach? Most doctors claim that it is completely justified. Indeed, often as a result of psycho-emotional trauma caused by a pain reaction, the child develops persistent neurotic reactions (tics, night terrors, urinary incontinence).

Today, the concept of anesthesia is defined as a controlled state caused by medications, in which the patient has no consciousness and no reaction to pain.

Anesthesia, as a medical intervention, is a complex concept; it may include administering to the patient artificial respiration, ensuring muscle relaxation, intravenous drip administration of drugs, control and compensation of blood loss, antibiotic prophylaxis, prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting, and so on. All these actions are aimed at ensuring that the patient undergoes surgery safely and “wake up” after the operation without experiencing a state of discomfort. And of course, like any medical effect, anesthesia has its indications and contraindications.

An anesthesiologist is responsible for anesthesia. Before the operation, he takes a detailed medical history of the patient, which helps determine possible factors risk and offer the most appropriate type of anesthesia.

Depending on the method of administration, anesthesia can be inhalational, intravenous and intramuscular. And also according to the form of impact it is divided into “large” and “small”.

“Minor” anesthesia is used for low-traumatic, short-term operations and manipulations (for example, removal of the appendix), as well as for various types studies when a short-term switching off of the child’s consciousness is necessary. For this purpose use:

Intramuscular anesthesia

Today it is rarely used, since the anesthesiologist does not have the ability to fully control its effect on the patient’s body. In addition, the drug ketamine, intended for this type of anesthesia, seriously disrupts long-term memory processes, interfering with the full development of the child.

Inhalation (hardware-mask) anesthesia

The child receives an anesthetic drug in the form of an inhalation mixture through the lungs when spontaneous breathing. Painkillers administered into the body by inhalation are called inhalational anesthetics (halothane, isoflurane, sevoflurane).

"Big" anesthesia– multicomponent effect on the body. It is used in operations of medium and high complexity, which are carried out with the obligatory shutdown of the patient’s own breathing - it is replaced by breathing using special devices. It includes the application different groups medicines(narcotic analgesics, drugs that temporarily relax skeletal muscles, hypnotics, local anesthetics, infusion solutions, blood products). Medicines are administered both intravenously and inhalation. During the operation, the patient is given artificial ventilation lungs (ventilator).

Leading experts admit that if 30 years ago the risk of complications from anesthesia reached seventy percent, today it is only one or two percent, and in leading clinics it is even less. Fatal outcomes due to the use of anesthesia are usually one in several thousand operations. In addition, the psychological profile of children allows them to relate much more easily to what has already happened; they rarely remember any sensations associated with anesthesia.

However, many parents stubbornly believe that the use of anesthesia will negatively affect the child’s health in the future. Very often they compare their own sensations experienced earlier after anesthesia. It is necessary to understand that in children, due to the characteristics of the body, general anesthesia proceeds somewhat differently. The intervention itself is usually much less than what happens with diseases in adults, and finally, today doctors have completely new groups of drugs at their disposal. All modern drugs numerous clinical trials– first in adult patients. And only after several years safe use they were allowed to be used in pediatric practice. The main feature of modern anesthesia is the absence adverse reactions, rapid elimination from the body, predictable duration of action of the administered dose. Based on this, anesthesia is safe, has no long-term consequences for the child’s health and can be repeated several times.

Mikhnina A.A.

With development modern society, with the advent of high technologies and their penetration in particular into medicine, it has become popular to demand from medical procedures not only relief from illness, but also a minimum of discomfort during their implementation. To relieve pain and psychological stress associated with her expectation, modern medicine is ready to offer us the use of anesthesia in the most different forms- from simple local anesthesia to deep medicated sleep (anesthesia). When performing major operations for treatment serious illnesses the need for anesthesia is obvious.

However, there are other situations: we want to give birth without pain, to treat our teeth without fear, and to improve our appearance without discomfort. However, there are no absolutely safe medical interventions and medications.

And here it is very important to weigh the risk against the actual need. In addition to the risk of complications from the medical procedure or exacerbation of the disease against the background of intervention in the body, it is also necessary not to forget about existing risk adverse effects from anesthesia. It is especially important to remember this when it comes to our children, for whom we, the parents, make decisions regarding their health.

Just recently, on a parenting forum, I read a message from a mom who gave her 1.5 one year old child surgery to cut the hyoid frenulum under general anesthesia. To be honest, I was somewhat discouraged by such frivolity - anesthesia for a child, since, in my opinion, there is absolutely no need for anesthesia for such a low-traumatic and quick procedure. This is the same as donating blood from your finger under anesthesia! Does this occur to you? At the same time, many participants in the discussion on this forum also did not see anything wrong in the described situation.

Actually, this incident served as the reason for conducting some research into the issue of the dangers of anesthesia. I began to wonder if it is as terrible and dangerous in its consequences as one sometimes hears. Can anesthesia seriously harm a child?

For help in writing this note, I turned to specialists: a surgeon highest category, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, employee of the Oncology Research Institute named after. prof. N.N. Petrova Mikhnin A.E. and an anesthesiologist-resuscitator of the highest category, an employee of the intensive care unit and intensive care newborns at Children's City Hospital No. 1 in St. Petersburg, Naumov D.Yu.

What is anesthesia, and why is it necessary?
Anesthesia can be local or general. In the second case, it is customary to talk about anesthesia. With local anesthesia, the drug is injected into the tissue directly in the area of ​​conduction. medical intervention or into the nerve endings responsible for carrying pain impulses from this area and adjacent (sometimes large) areas to the brain. However, it does not have a significant effect on the body as a whole (with the exception of a dangerous case of an allergic reaction to an analgesic). This is how we treat teeth, remove papillomas, and do piercings. Epidural or spinal anesthesia used during childbirth is also local.

General anesthesia (general anesthesia, anesthesia) is a condition caused by pharmacological agents and characterized by controlled switching off of consciousness and loss of sensitivity, suppression reflex functions and reactions to external stimuli, which allows you to perform surgical interventions without dangerous consequences for the body and with complete amnesia during the operation. The term “general anesthesia” more fully than the term “anesthesia” reflects the essence of the state that must be achieved to safely perform a surgical operation. The main thing is to eliminate the reaction to painful stimuli, and depression of consciousness is of less importance. (The common everyday expression “general anesthesia” is incorrect; the equivalent is “oil”).

Mikhnin Alexander Evgenievich:“Exactly. The main goal of general anesthesia is to prevent such dangerous condition body as a painful shock, which can lead to death. It is important to provide high-quality anesthesia to the patient, while he may be conscious (depending on the type of operation performed). This effect is achieved, for example, with epidural anesthesia. Another important task"Anesthesia is a complete relaxation of the muscles, facilitating access to the internal organs."

In a situation where we are talking about treating a child, the goals of using anesthesia often change priority, and the need to turn off consciousness and immobilize a small patient may come to the fore.

Mikhnin Alexander Evgenievich:“It’s all true. But, nevertheless, there is important rule, based on common sense, and which I, as a surgeon, always adhere to in relation to both adults and very young patients. Its essence is that the danger of anesthesia should not exceed the risk of the medical manipulation for which the patient is given anesthesia.”

There is an opinion that anesthesia shortens life. However, I read a lot of materials on sites medical clinics that drugs for general anesthesia and the technology for their introduction into the body have changed significantly over the long period of their practical use (ether anesthesia was first used in 1846). During clinical trials New drugs were developed, and anesthesia today has become practically safe. What should you still be wary of during general anesthesia?

Naumov Dmitry Yurievich:“Anesthesia itself, of course, does not shorten life. Otherwise, many of the patients I know would have already died from its consequences, having been cured of the underlying disease and, in fact, healthy people. The danger of anesthesia really lies, on the one hand, in the toxicity of the drugs used, which was especially important at the dawn of the era of the use of drug anesthesia, when a variety of substances were used, including substances dangerous for their long-term consequences, required level analgesia and relaxation of the body was achieved due to the prolonged maintenance of highly toxic doses of the drug in the patient’s blood, and on the other hand, the risks are determined by the level of qualification of the anesthesiologist.

Majority negative consequences anesthesia is associated precisely with the human factor: firstly and mainly, with the characteristics of the patient’s body, which can give an unexpected reaction, and you need to be ready to cope with it; secondly, with the qualifications of the anesthesiologist himself, when he does not fully master modern technologies combined anesthesia, did not keep track of some vital parameters of the patient’s body under anesthesia or did not take the necessary measures to maintain them and correct the patient’s condition in a timely manner, did not promptly notice an allergy to some medicine used (these, of course, are criminal extremes ).

Today, modern drugs that have no long-term effects and are quickly eliminated from the body (for example, sevofluoran, remifentanil) are used for general anesthesia. Anesthesia is carried out by a combination of various substances and methods of their administration: intravenously, intramuscularly, inhalation, rectally, transnasally. Combined use two or more drugs are produced in order to reduce the dose, and, consequently, the toxicity of each of them, to provide all the necessary components of anesthesia using agents with selective properties without profound disruption of the functions of the central nervous system.

And yet we must not forget that even the most safe drugs to provide anesthesia, they have a certain toxicity to the body. It’s no coincidence that anesthesia is also called a medical coma.”

This means that there may still be some consequences from the use of anesthesia, even a modern one and carried out efficiently by a competent and experienced anesthesiologist, just like from any medical procedure. What are they, and what is the probability of getting this or that complication?

Naumov Dmitry Yurievich: “There are respiratory, cardiovascular and neurological complications of anesthesia, as well as anaphylactic shock.
Respiratory complications include cessation of breathing during the procedure of general anesthesia (apnea) or after recovery from anesthesia after the patient’s breathing has been completely restored (recurarization), bronchiolospasm, laryngospasm.
The causes of this type of complication are varied: from mechanical injuries during the procedure of general anesthesia (trauma with a laryngoscope, rough intubation, exposure to various dust, foreign bodies and vomit in Airways etc.) to the individual reaction to drugs and the general serious condition of the patient. Increased risk such complications occur in persons suffering from diseases respiratory systems s. Thus, bronchiolospasm (total or partial) can occur in patients with tumors of the bronchi and lungs, bronchial asthma and prone to allergic reactions. Laryngospasm often develops when secretions accumulate in the larynx, in particular in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis. (author's note - The frequency of such complications averages 25% (mainly as a result of regurgitation of gastric contents)(1)).
Cardiovascular complications include arrhythmias, bradycardia, and cardiac arrest. Most often, they occur due to inadequate management of general anesthesia (overdose of certain drugs), insufficiently prompt elimination of signs of hypoxia, untimely or ineffective resuscitation measures carried out to correct the consequences of a surgical operation performed on a patient (severe irritation of reflexogenic zones, massive blood loss, etc.).
A risk factor here is also the patient’s history of diseases. of cardio-vascular system. The average incidence of such complications is 1:200 cases in the risk group.
Neurological complications include convulsions, muscle pain, trembling upon awakening, hyperthermia, regurgitation, vomiting. The causes of this type of complications are also a reaction to various medications used during surgery, concomitant diseases of the central nervous system (brain tumor, epilepsy, meningitis), and inadequate preoperative preparation. There is a category of patients who have such unpleasant and dangerous phenomenon during anesthesia, such as vomiting, which can lead to blockage of the respiratory tract, bronchospasm and impaired ventilation of the lungs and hypoxia during surgery, as well as pneumonia in postoperative period, occurs without any apparent reason.
Extremely dangerous complication during operations performed both under anesthesia and under local anesthesia, is anaphylactic shock, which is an individual allergic reaction of the body to medications, manifested by a sharp sudden decrease in blood pressure, disruption of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. The allergen can be either narcotic drugs, so medicines and solutions used during surgery. Often this complication ends fatal, because An anaphylactic reaction is difficult and difficult to treat; the basis of therapy is hormonal drugs. (author's note - The average incidence of such complications is 1:10,000 cases. (2))
To exclude the possibility of such a reaction of the body, the anesthesiologist must very carefully study the patient’s medical history and information about the presence of allergic reactions on medications, in particular, on various anesthetics, in order to prevent their use. Extremely important in in this case is to provide the patient himself with reliable and complete information about yourself when answering questions asked by doctors.
It is also important to note that anesthesia affects memory. During severe anesthesia, brain function related to memory deteriorates. Sometimes irreversible."

Mikhnin Alexander Evgenievich: “For the safest possible operation and minimization of the risks associated with putting the patient under anesthesia, high-quality preoperative preparation of the patient is very important, including the correction of activity disorders various systems body, relieving exacerbations of chronic diseases, maintaining a diet and rest on the eve of surgery. In particular, 4-6 hours before surgery, under anesthesia, the intake of food and liquids is prohibited to eliminate the risk of vomiting. Compliance with the latter requirement largely lies on the conscience of the patient, and he must understand the seriousness of possible consequences its violations. Preparation for surgery can take from 1 day. up to 1-2 weeks."

Which of the following complications can most often occur in children during anesthesia? Are there any peculiarities here in comparison with adult patients?

Naumov Dmitry Yurievich: “The specifics of the use of general anesthesia in children are associated with the characteristics of the child’s body. Thus, newborns have reduced sensitivity to certain narcotic substances, so their concentration in the blood is sometimes required to be 30% higher compared to adult patients. This increases the likelihood of overdose and respiratory depression, and as a consequence of hypoxia. There are a number of drugs that are never used during anesthesia for children.
Oxygen is an integral part of any inhalational anesthesia. However, it is now well known that in premature infants, hyperoxygenation (use of 100% oxygen) can lead to severe vasoconstriction of the vessels of the immature retina, causing retrolental fibroplasia and blindness. In the central nervous system, it leads to disruption of thermoregulation and mental functions, and convulsive syndrome. In the lungs, hyperoxia causes inflammation of the airway mucosa and destruction of surfactant. The anesthesiologist must know and take into account all these features.
IN childhood The thermoregulation system is imperfect, so special attention must be paid to maintaining constant temperature body and avoid both hypothermia and overheating, which can lead to a very life-threatening complication - hyperthermia (frequency this complication It is rare, approximately 1: 100,000 cases, the more dangerous it is if it suddenly occurs. Usually anesthesiologists are not prepared to face such a problem, because... I have usually never encountered it in my entire practice). Also, specific complications of general anesthesia in children include convulsions, the development of which may be associated with hypocalcemia, hypoxia, as well as subglottic laryngeal edema. In the presence of various chronic diseases, the likelihood of certain complications of anesthesia in children, as well as in adults, increases depending on the characteristics of these concomitant diseases. Everything is individual here.”

Mikhnin Alexander Evgenievich: “For elderly and pediatric patients, preparation for surgery under anesthesia must necessarily include a psychological component and complete removal of preoperative emotional stress. In such patients, the nervous system is unstable, and there is a high degree of psychogenic neurological disorders, which can cause complications of general anesthesia from both the central nervous system and the cardiovascular system. The constant presence and psychological support of close relatives for elderly patients and parents for child patients in the period of preparation for surgery and immediately before the administration of anesthesia is very important.”

Thus, modern anesthesia is minimally toxic, highly effective and quite safe if it is performed by an experienced anesthesiologist. It can be performed many times without harming the patient's health, unless any complications arise. The likelihood of them in modernly equipped clinics with highly qualified staff is not so high. However, there is always room for risk associated with individual characteristics each person, as well as the insufficient qualifications of the anesthesiologist, on whom the vital functions of the patient’s body completely depend during the operation under anesthesia.

I’ll quote here from one very sensible resource onarkoze.ru: “What is the probability of death from anesthesia in the Russian Federation? It is impossible to give a definite answer to this question due to the lack of any plausible statistics. In our country, all facts of death on the operating table are carefully kept silent and hidden.”

By putting your child into a state of medicated sleep, you completely entrust his life to the anesthesiologist.

One of my friends, a cosmetologist at a prestigious clinic aesthetic medicine, who often has to deal with people who give priority to their appearance, and therefore often resort to the services of plastic surgeons, once said that, even being herself an adherent of the cult of beauty, she deeply does not understand such a frivolous willingness of people to plunge into anesthesia without vital indications. After all, there is always the possibility of not getting out of it and dying. Moreover, she determined for herself this probability of 50/50, which, of course, from a statistical point of view is an exaggeration, but from the point of view of the common sense of each of us, perhaps not. After all, life is the most valuable thing. Whether it is worth risking it without obvious necessity, even if the chance of death is one in a million, everyone decides for himself.

Links:
1. Levichev Eduard Aleksandrovich, dissertation for the degree of Ph.D. in the specialty "Anesthesiology and Reanimatology" on the topic "Prevention of regurgitation and aspiration during general anesthesia in emergency patients", 2006 - p. 137
2. Vladimir Kochkin, “Mom and Baby” magazine, No. 2, 2006

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116 thoughts on “Anesthesia for a child”

Holding a majority surgical operations These days it is unthinkable without adequate anesthesia. Despite the fact that general anesthesia has long been successfully used in pediatrics, parents are frightened by the prospect of administering it to a small child - they are frightened possible dangers and complications after surgery, the question of the consequences for the child is of concern. Parents should be aware of the intricacies of the procedure and contraindications to it.

Some manipulations with a child cannot be performed without general anesthesia.

General anesthesia is special condition organism, in which, under the influence of special drugs, the patient falls into sleep, complete loss of consciousness and loss of sensitivity occurs. Children do not tolerate any medical manipulations, therefore, during serious operations, it is necessary to “turn off” the baby’s consciousness so that he does not feel pain and does not remember what is happening - all this can cause severe stress. The doctor also needs anesthesia - diverting attention to the child’s reaction can lead to mistakes and serious complications.

The child's body has its own physiological and anatomical features– The ratio of height, weight and body surface area changes significantly as we grow older. For children under three years of age, it is advisable to administer the first medications in a familiar environment and in the presence of their parents. It is preferable to carry out induction of anesthesia at this age using a special toy mask, diverting attention from unpleasant sensations.

Carrying out mask anesthesia for a child

As the child grows older, he or she tolerates manipulations more calmly - a child of 5-6 years old can be involved in introductory anesthesia - for example, invite the child to hold the mask with his hands or blow into the anesthesia mask - after exhalation, a deep inhalation of the drug will follow. It is important to choose the correct dosage of the drug, since children's body reacts sensitively to exceeding the dose - the likelihood of complications in the form of respiratory depression and overdose increases.

Preparation for anesthesia and necessary tests

General anesthesia requires parents to carefully prepare the baby. It is necessary to examine the child in advance and pass necessary tests. Typically required general analysis blood and urine, examination of the coagulation system, ECG, pediatrician’s report on general condition health. On the eve of the operation, a consultation with an anesthesiologist who will administer general anesthesia is required. The specialist will examine the child, clarify the absence of contraindications, and find out the exact body weight for calculation. required dosage and will answer all questions parents may have. It is important to make sure there is no runny nose - nasal congestion is a contraindication to anesthesia. Another important contraindication to anesthesia is an increase in temperature for unknown reasons.

Before general anesthesia, the child must be examined by doctors.

The baby's stomach must be completely empty during anesthesia. Vomiting during general anesthesia is dangerous - children have very narrow airways, so the likelihood of complications in the form of aspiration of vomit is very high. Newborns and infants up to one year old last time receive the breast 4 hours before surgery. Children under 1 year of age who are in artificial feeding, maintain a fasting pause of 6 hours. Children over 5 years old have their last meal the night before, and 4 hours before anesthesia it is contraindicated to drink plain water.

How is anesthesia administered in childhood?

The anesthesiologist always tries to minimize discomfort from anesthesia for a child. To do this, premedication is carried out before the operation - the baby is offered sedatives, relieving anxiety and fear. Children under the age of three or four years already in the ward receive drugs that put them into a state of half-sleep and complete relaxation. Small children under 5 years old experience separation from their parents very painfully, so it is advisable to stay with the child until he falls asleep.

Children over 6 years of age usually tolerate anesthesia well and enter the operating room conscious. The doctor brings the child to his face transparent mask, through which oxygen and a special gas are supplied, causing anesthesia for children. As a rule, the child falls asleep within a minute after the first deep breath.

Introduction to anesthesia occurs differently depending on the age of the child.

After falling asleep, the doctor adjusts the depth of anesthesia and carefully monitors vital signs - measures blood pressure, monitors the condition of the child’s skin, and evaluates heart function. In cases where general anesthesia is administered infant up to a year, it is important to prevent excessive cooling or overheating of the baby.

Anesthesia for children under one year old

Most doctors try to delay the moment of introducing general anesthesia to the baby for up to a year as far as possible. This is due to the fact that in the first months of life there is an active development of most organs and systems (including the brain), which at this stage are vulnerable to adverse factors.

Conducting general anesthesia for a 1 year old child

But when urgent need Anesthesia is also given at this age - anesthesia will cause less harm than no anesthesia necessary treatment. The greatest difficulties in children under one year of age are associated with observing a fasting break. According to statistics, infants under one year of age tolerate anesthesia well.

Consequences and complications of anesthesia for children

General anesthesia is a rather serious procedure that carries a certain risk of complications and consequences, even taking into account contraindications. It is believed that anesthesia can damage neural connections in the brain and contribute to increased intracranial stress. Children under 2-3 years of age and children are considered at risk for unpleasant consequences. younger age, especially those with diseases of the nervous system. However, it should be noted that such symptoms in most cases developed with the introduction of outdated anesthesia drugs, and modern anesthesia drugs have minimal side effects. In most cases, unpleasant symptoms disappeared some time after the operation.

Children under 2-3 years of age endure anesthesia the hardest

From probable complications development is considered the most dangerous anaphylactic shock, which occurs when you are allergic to the injected drug. Aspiration of gastric contents is a complication that is more common in emergency operations when there was no time for appropriate preparation.

It is very important to choose a competent anesthesiologist who will evaluate contraindications, minimize the risks of developing unpleasant consequences, select the correct drug and its dosage, and also quickly take action in case of complications.