Surgery with Local Anesthesia
Undergoing facial surgery does not have to mean a long, grueling recovery period. When the surgery is performed under local anesthesia and intravenous sedation, stress on the patient and body systems are far less, and the recovery faster.
Dr. Siegel focuses his practice strictly upon facial surgery. Other than when performing rhinoplasty, facial surgeries are performed with local, and /or twilight anesthesia. The surgery has a quicker recovery time, and avoids the risks associated with general anesthesia.
Difference Between Twilight and General Anesthesia
General anesthesia requires a breathing tube to keep you safe during a procedure. The medication is reversed after surgery so you can awaken and become aware. This doesn’t happen in seconds but takes time. You will be resting in a recovery room where you will gradually become aware, but may feel groggy, have chills, nausea, or even vomiting.
Twilight anesthesia is a different approach, in which the area to be surgically corrected is numbed with injections. For your own comfort, mild intravenous sedation is added, or “twilight” anesthesia. The nerve signals of pain are blocked by the local anesthesia injections, and you will feel relaxed and comfortable under this safer form of anesthesia. The awakening process and recovery are far faster than with general anesthesia, as the medications are shed by the body much faster, as well as putting less stress on all body systems.
Benefits of Local Anesthesia for Facial Plastic Surgery
We want your experience in facial rejuvenation or enhancement to be positive. The benefits of the use of local anesthesia include:
- Better surgical experience
- Less risk
- Fewer side effects (nausea, vomiting, grogginess)
- No pain or discomfort
- Less invasive
- Safer alternative
- Fewer drugs needed to perform surgery
- Faster recovery
- Reduced risk of complications
- Ventilation not needed
- More cost-effective
Your Recovery Time – It is Important to Us.
We want your entire experience to be positive, including recovery time. Recovering from surgery performed with twilight anesthesia is faster and more comfortable than surgery performed under general anesthesia, which is essentially a medically-induced coma. We believe our patients appreciate the speed with which they can undergo aesthetic surgery, and the freedom to return home to rest and recover without the unpleasant side effects that are common with general anesthesia.
Our process allows our patients to return to work or other activities in life much faster – even with a facelift or neck lift, most patients return to work after just five days. Along with Dr. Siegel’s advanced surgical techniques which leads to minimal bruising and swelling, the use of local anesthesia is an added benefit.
What is the Anesthesia Experience?
When you are undergoing facial plastic surgery from Dr. Siegel, under twilight sedation, the process is easier to experience. The anesthesiologist will give you a light intravenous sedation to block pain, reduce anxiety, and produce temporary memory loss. You will be sedated, but conscious in what is referred to as a “twilight state.”
You will feel sleepy but able to respond if needed. This is a pain-free surgical experience that is far less stressful on the body, with minimal to no side effects. You will remember little, if any, of the surgical experience once you are taken off the intravenous medications.
You will simply become aware that your face is bandaged and your surgery complete, and free to return home once fully alert. Because the medications used are eliminated quickly, most patients feel back to normal several hours after the procedure, and completely normal after just 24 hours.