Plain language
Glossary
Anesthesia and aesthetic surgery words, explained simply.
- Abdominoplasty
- Tummy tuck.
- Anesthesia
- Medication or techniques that block sensation or awareness so a procedure can be done comfortably.
- Anesthesiologist
- A physician specialist in anesthesia, pain control and the care of patients during surgery.
- Anxiolysis
- Light sedation that reduces anxiety while you stay awake and responsive.
- Awake surgery
- Surgery done with local anesthesia, with or without light sedation, so you are not fully unconscious.
- Blepharoplasty
- Eyelid surgery.
- Capnography
- Monitoring of the carbon dioxide in your breath, used to watch breathing during sedation and anesthesia.
- Deep plane facelift
- A facelift technique that repositions deeper facial tissue layers together.
- Epinephrine
- A medication added to local anesthetic that narrows blood vessels, reducing bleeding and prolonging numbness.
- Explantation
- Removal of breast implants.
- Fat transfer
- Moving fat from one area to another, usually obtained by liposuction.
- General anesthesia
- A medically induced state of unconsciousness. Breathing is supported with an airway device or breathing tube.
- Gynecomastia
- Enlargement of breast tissue in men.
- Intubation
- Placing a breathing tube in the windpipe, used for some general anesthetics.
- J-Plasma (Renuvion)
- A helium-plasma energy device used for skin tightening, sometimes combined with liposuction.
- Labiaplasty
- Surgery to reshape the labia minora.
- Laryngeal mask airway
- A soft airway device that sits above the voice box, used for some general anesthetics instead of a breathing tube.
- Lidocaine
- A commonly used local anesthetic that numbs tissue for a limited time.
- Liposuction
- A procedure that removes fat through small cannulas.
- Local anesthesia
- Numbing medicine placed in a specific area of the body.
- Marcaine (bupivacaine)
- A longer-acting local anesthetic often used for post-procedure comfort.
- Mastopexy
- Breast lift.
- Moderate sedation
- A drowsy state in which you respond to voice or touch while an anesthesiologist monitors you.
- Monitored anesthesia care
- Care in which an anesthesiologist monitors you and provides sedation or pain control during a procedure.
- Otoplasty
- Ear surgery, commonly to reposition prominent ears.
- Post-operative nausea and vomiting (PONV)
- Nausea after anesthesia. Preventive medication and planning can reduce it.
- Pre-operative assessment
- A review of your medical history, medications and risks before surgery.
- Pulse oximetry
- A clip on the finger that measures your blood oxygen level.
- Sedation
- Medication that relaxes you or makes you drowsy.
- Tumescent technique
- Injecting a large volume of dilute local anesthetic with epinephrine into fat before liposuction.