Breast Surgery Anaesthesia Information

Most surgery requires a general anaesthetic, or sometimes a “local” with sedation. As long as your anaesthetist is qualified and experienced, and uses up-to-date methods and equipment the risks are very low – less than one in 100,000 for a serious complication.

Your anaesthetist will ask you about anything that might increase your risk. For example, if you have had a heart attack, there is an increased chance you could have another one.

Asthma and other chest diseases will increase risk, but not significantly if it is well controlled. The same goes for diabetes. Your anaesthetist is trained to safely deal with any conditions that may increase your risk. He or she will tell you if the risk is significant, and you should always ask about any concerns you might have.

Whether you have a general anaesthetic or a local, it is very important that there is nothing in your stomach before you have your anaesthetic. This is because it could come back up and go down into your lungs, as you can’t cough while you are anaesthetised. This can have very serious consequences, even death, so be absolutely sure:

• NOT to have anything to eat for at least six hours before surgery
• You MAY drink CLEAR FLUIDS ONLY up until two hours before. (eg, water, clear juice or cordial but NOT milk, soup, pulpy juices etc.)