For your comfort, safety and peace of mind, anesthesia is administered under the care of our board certified anesthesiologists. This doctor will visit with you before your procedure.
Intravenous Sedation:
Our anesthesiologist will administer medication through an intravenous catheter. The purpose of the medication is to make you feel comfortable during your procedure and afterward in recovery.
New advances in intravenous sedation have made endoscopic tests such as colonoscopy and upper endoscopy painless.
Intravenous sedation enables patients to be pain-free during the procedure and relieves the stress and anxiety typically associated with any medical procedure. This form of sedation will leave you with little or no memory of the procedure. In fact, at the conclusion of most tests, patients usually ask, “When are you going to start?”
Safety during your intravenous sedation is of utmost importance to us. We utilize a number of sophisticated monitoring devices and techniques to assure your safety and wellbeing. Most of these devices are more precise extensions of your own senses.
You will likely become aware of certain devices placed on your body prior to going to sleep that will monitor your responses during your procedure. These monitoring devices improve the safety of the intravenous sedation and allow your procedure to be as pain-free and safe as possible.
Monitoring devices include
- Blood pressure cuff to measure your blood pressure at frequent intervals during your anesthesia. This may feel tight on your arm for a few seconds about every 5 minutes. The first time is the tightest as the machine senses your normal blood pressure range.
- Pulse oximeter, a device placed on your finger, toe or earlobe to measure the amount of oxygen in your body at all times, and also displays your pulse rate.
- EKG (electrocardiogram) displays a constant picture of your heart tracing on a monitor screen for us to see. Small electrodes may be placed on your chest or back to gather the information for the EKG machine.
Recovery From Intravenous Sedation
Most of the time, patients wake up very quickly after their procedure. However, they are not conscious enough to drive themselves home. Judgment can be affected by medications and it is important not to drive, operate dangerous equipment or sign any legal papers for 24 hours after receiving any medication for sedation.
