What risks are there with anesthesia for my dog or cat and how are these risks minimized?
Modern anesthetics have greatly enhanced the safety of anesthesia. Despite these advances, there are still risks associated with any anesthesia.
Anesthetic risk for healthy young dogs and cats has been estimated to be near or below 1% of all cases for some time. Much of this is due to careful attention to understanding possible pre-existing conditions that may impact anesthesia, as well as the institution of safety measures and monitoring of the patient during the procedure.
Some complications from anesthesia can arise from factors that we have control over and others come from factors that we cannot control. Individual pets can be particularly sensitive to anesthetic agents, and this is difficult if not impossible to determine prior to a surgery. Other factors, including pre-existing medical problems, can be determined and managed prior to and during anesthesia.
At the Sun Prairie Pet Clinic, every patient that will be anesthetized is safeguarded with measures prior to and during anesthesia to minimize risk. Prior to anesthesia, each patient is screened with a medical examination and pre-anesthetic blood work; if any complicating factors are found then the anesthesia is altered or cancelled. During anesthesia many vital parameters are monitored, including oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, and respiratory rate. Perhaps most importantly, each patient is constantly monitored by an experienced member of the technical staff for the entire duration of the anesthesia, from induction to recovery.