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Breast Implant Surgery - General Anesthesia or Local Anesthesia?

asked 1 year ago by Mountain Girl At Heart
Latest answer by Larry Fan, MD
Question viewed 478 times
Tags: anesthesia, comparison, local anesthesia

I would like to have just local anesthesia for my breast implant surgery but it seems that most Dr.s only offer general....I am allergic to all narcotics and found that with my 3 C-sections, I was much happier being wide awake and aware for them. Can anyone please share with me the pros and cons and risks etc and why local is not offered as commonly? Thank you so much!

15 answers to Breast Implant Surgery - General Anesthesia or Local Anesthesia?

General anesthesia in breast augmentation

I always perform all my breast augmentations under general anesthesia because it gives me greater control and in my opinion is more comfortable for the patient. I place 99 % of my primary augmentations under the muscle and I cannot imagine that this can be done well with local anesthesia. I would have talk to my anesthesiologist about your allergiy to narcotics to see what can be done to alter your drug regime.

Vishnu Rumalla, MD
Dallas Plastic Surgeon

Breast Augmentation Can Be Done Under Local Anesthesia But The Implant Must Be Above The Muscle

Most breast augmentations are done under general anesthesia for three compelling reasons; patient comfort, long-term implant benefits of being under the muscle, and a shortened operative time. (which also means lower cost) Breast augmentation can be done under local anesthesia but the implant must be placed above the muscle and the operation will take longer. (meaning the cost of the operating room will wipe out any cost savings from not having a general anesthetic) I have done a... more

Barry L. Eppley, MD, DMD
Indianapolis Plastic Surgeon

www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com

Breast surgery with local anesthesia

If you want to have your surgery with local anesthetic, it is commonly paired with sedation or "twighlight sleep". This type of anesthesia is safe but not commonly used for breast augmentation. The reason you could be awake for your c-sections is that you had an epidural or spinal in to numb your spinal cord from your waist down. But you cannot use this type of numbing for your breasts because you would have to perform the epidural higher up which makes you... more

Bivik Rajnikant Shah, MD
Columbus Plastic Surgeon

Breast augmentation surgery anesthesia

There are a few things to consider when thinking about breast augmentation surgery. While you're considering your surgeon and evaluating if you like and trust him, you should take into mind his anesthesia prefernce Presumably he has your best interest in mind. If his prices are considerably lower than the majority of your other researched quotes, think about the anesthetic he is using. On ocassion, some will use a local/regional anesthetic which means he will... more

Ricardo A. Meade, MD
Dallas Plastic Surgeon

GA for augmentation

The reason most all do GA for augmentation is because it is safer and better in an acreditied facility with an MD anesthesiologist.

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

General anesthesia is better for breast augmentation.

It is better for the patient and also the surgeon when the patient is under general anesthesia. If you are allergic, talk to the anestheologist and let them know your allergies. This can be worked around. see video

Otto Joseph Placik, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Breast augmentation under local

There are several reasons why breast augmentation under local is a bad idea. The best results with breast augmentation come when the implant is put under the muscle. This is almost impossible to achieve under local because of the pain and discomfort. Therefore to be able to do this would cause incredible pain to the patient or a suboptimal result would have to be settled for. The amount of local required also starts to put the amount into a range which can be dangerous in order to... more

Andrew Kaczynski, MD
Sacramento Plastic Surgeon

www.drkmd.com

Breast augmentation and anesthesia

While it probably can be done under local, I think that most patients would be uncomfortable and I prefer general so that they can be more comfortable and I can do m y best work withotu worrying about the patient's comfort level.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

General vs Local anesthesia for breast augmentation

I perform all my breast augments under GA because it is safer and more comfortable for the patient. In order to perform the surgery under local you would require higher doses of local anesthesia to achieve painless surgery. But since you are allergic to narcotics I would recommend seeing an anesthesiologist to get advice on the appropriate medications for you. Good luck.

Dana Khuthaila, MD
New York Plastic Surgeon

Breast implant, anaesthesia

It will depend upon where the implant is positioned, above the muscle implant placement can be performed under local anaesthesia and mild sedation. If it is under the muscle then you may need deeper sedation. If procedure involves a technique to alter the muscles to position the inplant then a General anaesthesia is preferable.

Sanjay Parashar, MD
Dubai Plastic Surgeon

Anesthesia for Breast Augmentation

Although I perform almost all of my augmentations under general anesthesia, it is certainly possible to do them under local anesthesia with sedation. In fact, 15 years ago most of my patients chose local anesthesia with sedation because of a cost savings which was in effect at that time but no longer is.

John Whitt, MD
Louisville Plastic Surgeon

General anesthesia for breast augmentation

Most of our patients have general anesthesia during their breast augmentation and do just fine. Some do so with IV sedation (twilight). Talk to your surgeon. When my patients have concerns or have a complicated history with anesthesia, I introduce them to my anesthesiologist beforehand for a pre-op consult. This may help alleviate some of your concerns. Good luck.

Allan J. Parungao, MD
Oak Brook Plastic Surgeon

Breast Augmentation Under Local Anesthesia

Dear Mountain Girl At Heart, The vast majority of plastic surgeons perform breast augmentation under general anesthesia because the procedure is more comfortable for both the patient and surgeon, particularly when placing implants below the muscle. This allows the surgery to be performed safely, efficiently, comfortably, and precisely. I, too, prefer to perform breast augmentation under general anesthesia, but I will occasionally perform the procedure under local anesthesia with... more

Larry Fan, MD
San Francisco Plastic Surgeon

Breast augmentation under twilight anesthetic

Local anesthetic is an important part of the overall anesthesia plan for breast augmentation- but I would recommend the addition of some sedation- in the form of Propofol and Ativan- to make the procedure more comfortable and efficient. A good anesthesia provider is essential for safe augmentation surgery. I agree that General Anesthesia is 'too much' for a straight forward augmentation.