Anesthesia helps numb the body and prevent discomfort during cosmetic surgery. Cosmetic surgeons perform operations under local or general anesthesia. They prefer the general option for deeply invasive surgeries, as the patient is asleep during the procedure. Local anesthesia is for short, less invasive operations where an individual remains awake and alert.
Skin Procedures
Most skin procedures can be performed using local anesthesia. Your surgeon numbs the specific area they’ll operate on. The patient will be awake throughout the cosmetic process yet free of pain. Botox injections use local anesthesia to avoid discomfort as the doctor reduces fine lines and wrinkles.
With the help of dermal fillers, a surgeon can smooth out wrinkles and restore skin volume. They use topical numbing cream or partial numbing, making the cosmetic surgery as comfortable as possible. During microneedling, your doctor creates micro-injuries on your skin using tiny needles that help stimulate the desired collagen production.
The doctor uses partial numbing to remove moles, warts, and skin lesions. They also treat scars, perform excision and dermabrasion, reduce isolated or small scars, and eliminate suspicious growth through partial numbing. It’s also applied in sclerotherapy to ease pain when the surgeon injects a solution into your veins to treat varicose and spider veins.
Liposuction
This type of surgery uses suction to eliminate fat from specific body areas. It is also known as body contouring or lipoplasty and can be performed on hips, arms, thighs, buttocks, and stomach. Small areas like the arms, neck, or chin can use local anesthesia.
The target fat for removal is under the skin and easy to remove, so there is no need for general anesthesia. Local numbing has no negative effect on the outcome compared to general numbing, but you may slightly feel the fluid being injected into the target area.
Breast Adjustments
Breast augmentation uses implants to reshape breasts. While it is less common, breast adjustments can be made using local anesthesia. Adjustments include breast enlargement, reduction, and augmentation. A plastic surgeon numbs the surrounding area. Then, implants are placed over the muscle and under the breast tissue. The procedure is safe, and the patient experiences minimal discomfort.
A combination of local and sedative aesthetics is effective in providing comfort in most minor breast surgical procedures. Minor breast augmentation procedures with little downtime and less invasion can also use local anesthesia. The surgeries may include breast implant adjustments, lump removal, or biopsies.
Hair Transplants and Chemical Peels
When surgeons operate on the scalp, they apply partial numbness to ease pain and discomfort in the donor and recipient areas. During follicular unit transplantation (FUT) or the strip method, they extract individual hair follicles from scalp strips and transplant them to desired areas.
With follicular unit extraction (FUE), hair follicles are taken from the sides or back of the scalp and placed in the recipient area. Other hair restoration techniques utilize minimal numbing. Practitioners perform most chemical peels without needing to numb the area, but deeper peels use local anesthesia to keep the patient comfortable.
Facelifts
Cosmetic surgeons administer local anesthesia to patients who need facial procedures to keep them awake and comfortable as they operate. Face surgery includes otoplasty, which involves ear correction that helps reshape ear cartilage or repin protruding ears.
Blepharoplasty removes excess fat or skin on the lower and upper eyelids. Rhinoplasty is a non-surgical surface-level procedure that helps reshape the nose or make minimal adjustments to the cartilage. Facial liposuction is a cosmetic surgery procedure that requires partial numbness to remove unwanted fat from the chin, cheeks, or neck.
During a lip augmentation, a surgeon removes the skin strip underneath the nose and raises the upper lip using sutures to achieve the desired look. Local anesthesia helps the practitioner visualize proper proportions, with no breathing tubes creating an obstruction. Numbing the upper lip leaves the patient comfortable so some can speak during the operation.
Seek Cosmetic Surgery With Local Anesthesia
For minor procedures, a surgeon administers local anesthesia through injection or topical cream to the area. Local anesthesia allows the patient to recover quickly from the surgery appointment. The numbness can last a few hours, depending on the application area and type of anesthetic. Start your search for a reputable surgical clinic that offers both local and general anesthesia for their services.
