Anesthesia...?

Question

does an anesthesiologist give the same amount of anesthesia to a 150 pound person and a 300 pound person?
What if the patient lies about their weight..are they destined for brian damage?

Answer 1

What a great question!

There are several things to consider...

First, for average size people between 5 feet and 6 feet tall once you get above 200-220 pounds, you are really just dealing with more and more fat. The heart, liver, lungs, kidneys etc are roughly the same size in a 5' 9" person who weighs 160 pounds as a 5' 2" person who weighs 350 pounds. So the same medicine doses would have nearly the same effect in both people. The exception here is for medicines that easily dissolve in fat, then you have to increase the dose. Google "lean body weight" for more info about this concept.

Secondly, different people metabolize anesthesia faster or more slowly, so for an operation where they "put you to sleep" they knock you out with a drug that only lasts a few minutes, then have you inhale gas that keeps you asleep. In order to give you the right amount of gas they don't base it on weight, they have more sophisticated monitors attached to you the determine second to second how "awake" or "asleep" you are, and the anesthesiologist dials the gas up or down as he needs to.

Finally, as others have pointed out, we use scales to weigh people because many people are wrong about their weight. Not because they lie, but because they haven't weighed themselves in a while, or their bathroom scale is off by a few pounds.

Answer 2

The short answer is no.

Anesthesiologists base the dose of medications (and we use quite a variety of medications) on a number of factors. The reactions of people to the drugs we use vary widely. Weight is certainly a factor, but we also must take into account the patient's medical condition, medications that they are on, desired depth of anesthesia (different procedures require different amounts) and other things.

The way we stay out of trouble is to "titrate to effect", which means we give a little at a time until we get the patient where we want him. Anesthesia isn't a matter of pushing one syringe full of drugs into the patient and seeing what happens. We actually use a mixture of, on average, 5-10 drugs per anesthetic, and are constantly monitoring the patient's condition and adjusting as needed. (That's for a general anesthetic. Spinals are a different story)

Obese patients have their own anesthetic issues, as their respiratory physiology and airway management can be a challenge.

Lying about weight doesn't matter. We are not fooled. (Most patients get weighed anyway.) I once had a patient who said she was 300 pounds, but when we weighed her, she was actually 469.

Brain damage after anesthesia is very rare. We are there watching the patient the whole time.

Answer 3

No they do not. They weigh you they don't just ask you how much you weigh.
Prior to surgery, anesthesiologists evaluate the patient's medical condition and formulate an anesthetic plan for each individual patient taking into consideration that patient's physical status. They base the types and amounts of anesthesia based on your allergies, previous reactions with anesthesia, your BMI, current health problems, blood pressure, etc. Alot of things are taken into account not just your weight.

If you have concerns and questions about your anethesia please ask your surgeon or nurse. If you are concerned about your health let them know.

Also I am pretty sure they can tell the difference between a 150 pound person and a 300 pound person regardless of what you told them.

Answer 4

Cardiac depression and respiratory depression are the first things you consider among other adverse effects when giving a general anesthesia. Brain damage can be caused from lack of blood supply.

It takes years of schooling and training to be an anesthesiologist. If they can earn a degree in anesthesiology, they can tell the difference between a 150lbs person and a 300lbs person.

Answer 5

What is Anaesthesia? Anaesthesia also spelled as Anesthesia is a medicine speciality related to providing patients with anaesthetic drugs in appropriate dosage in special scenarios such as surgeries. Anaesthesia is derived from Greek meaning “loss of sensation” and it is a reversible condition meaning after a while the patient will come out of the “loss of sensation” state.

Answer 6

Its time measured! If they want you knocked out for 1 hour they will inject you with 1/2 oz lets say! but if they want you wake up when ever! they will use something else! Still anesthetic but works differently! Like in surgery! they are not sure when it will be done! so they'll keep it injected! until they are done and unplug you! than it takes about 10 to 15 min to wake up! Anesthetic these days wouldnt do permanent brain damage! We have great medical technology to prevent you from dying! You'll get through it!

Answer 7

Adverse Effects Of Local Anaesthesia
Local anesthetic drugs are toxic to the heart (where they cause arrhythmia) and brain (where they cause unconsciousness and seizures). Arrhythmias may be resistant to defibrillation and other standard treatments, and may lead to loss of heart function and death.
The first evidence of local anesthetic toxicity involves the nervous system including agitation, confusion, dizziness, blurred vision, tinnitus, metallic taste in mouth, and nausea that can quickly progress to seizure and cardiovascular collapse.
Direct infiltration of local anesthetic into skeletal muscle will cause temporary paralysis of the muscle.
Toxicity can occur with any local anesthetic

Answer 8

Dose of anesthetic is guided by heart rate,blood pressure, type of surgery,duration of surgery,general factors like diabetes,anemia etc. Wt alone is not the basis.Correct dose is decided in each case.

Answer 9

the patient can lie but the doctor's team always check the patient's true body-weight. it's called 'collecting objective-data'.
wrong dose of anesthesia can cause respiration failure and even death.

Answer 10

For the initial shot, they weigh you, they don't just ask. Also weight doesn't account for metabolic rates, so they also monitor your vital signs. (blood pressure, temperature, pulse and respiration rates)