The preanesthetic patient evaluation is critical for patient safety as it promotes identification of individual risk factors and underlying physiologic changes or pathologic compromise that will impact the anesthetic plan.
The pet owner begins the continuum of anesthesia with fasting the pet and administering medications as directed by the anesthesia team.
Prior to the start of any general anesthesia or sedation-only procedure, it is critical to ensure that all equipment and monitors are turned on, are functioning, and have undergone appropriate safety checks.
The patient should be stabilized before anesthesia as anesthesia and surgery can exacerbate pre-existing physiologic compromise.
Local anesthetic drugs block sodium channels and provide complete pain relief from the nerves that are blocked. This fact led to the recommendation “ local anesthetics should be utilized, insofar as possible, with every surgical procedure . " 2 The task force recommends the use of local anesthesia, including these simple techniques for common procedures: Castrations Ovariohysterectomies Perineal procedures (i.e., urinary catheter placement) Dental extractions
Task force and contributors to the 2020 AAHA Anesthesia and Monitoring Guidelines for Dogs and Cats .
An individualized anesthetic plan with specific and sequential steps ensures the continuum of care throughout the entire anesthetic process. A complete anesthetic plan must address all phases of anesthesia, with inclusion of perioperative analgesia throughout each phase. Although each patient should be treated as an individual, having a set of anesthesia plans that are used repeatedly is appropriate.
Multimodal anesthesia and analgesia are crucial to providing a balanced anesthetic event. Review, print, and share these tables with your team when considering which medications to include in individual protocols.
There are many factors to consider when choosing an opioid, including the degree of desired analgesia, onset and duration of action, adverse effects, and availability. This table can help you do what you do best—comfort your patients in their time of need.
Sometimes, IM induction protocols are necessary in healthy patients. Making that choice and picking a protocol are some of the many decisions required for a smooth anesthetic event. Review these combinations and consider which might be the most beneficial for each patient.
