Myth Busting
Five anaesthesia myths it is time to retire
From the fear of not waking up to the idea that spinal anaesthesia causes lifelong back pain — a quiet correction.
Dr. Priyamvada Goel5 min read
Myth: 'I might not wake up.' Modern anaesthesia mortality directly attributable to the anaesthetic is in the range of one in two hundred thousand. You are statistically safer in an operating theatre than on the drive there.
Myth: 'Spinal anaesthesia causes permanent back pain.' It does not. Transient soreness at the injection site is common; chronic back pain attributable to a spinal is rare.
Myth: 'General anaesthesia damages memory.' For most patients, no. Post-operative cognitive changes are usually multifactorial and recover.