General anesthesia during pregnancy
In certain situations it may be necessary to put a pregnant woman under general anesthesia in order to perform surgical procedures. If it can be prevented, and the surgery could be performed after pregnancy, general anesthesia is not usually performed during pregnancy. Nevertheless, in surgical emergencies, such as appendicitis or after accidents, general anesthesia may be used.
However, the drugs and anaesthetic gases used must be slightly modified compared to general anaesthesia for non-pregnant women, as certain drugs are suspected of causing malformations in the child. However, these drugs are known and are no longer used under general anesthesia in pregnant women. For this reason, it is important to inform the attending doctors about the pregnancy. It should be noted that the risk of premature birth increases depending on the individual duration of the pregnancy. Separate devices are used to monitor the condition of the child during the operation so that the medication and dose can be adjusted during the operation if necessary.
General anesthesia possible despite a cold?
Before every anaesthesia, a detailed discussion with an anaesthetist takes place, who reports on the risks and the course of the anaesthesia. In this conversation the person to be treated is also informed about the current state of health. If an acute cold is present, the anesthesiologist must be informed before the operation.
In many cases, a cold is no reason not to undergo the operation, although it always depends on the individual severity of the illness. The situation is different if there is an increased temperature due to the viral disease, and in such cases, if there is a possibility, the surgery date is postponed. Overall, this is recommended in the case of a severely impaired state of health during elective surgery.If it is a surgical emergency, a cold is no reason not to perform the surgery. If possible, the attending physicians should be informed about the presence of an infection in these cases as well, in order to change the medication or its dosage if necessary.