Tonsillectomy And general anesthesia
I am a 55 year old female and I’m scheduled to have my tonsils removed in November. I was already nervous about this but yesterday made it worse….I had a different procedure done and after it the anesthesiologist went out and told my husband that I need to make sure I’m using my CPAP every night because he could tell I have severe apnea. I have mixed apnea and my ENT says removing tonsils will help. Anyway I decided to look up the general anesthesia since that’s what they will be using for my tonsils - not the twilight or whatever the used yesterday. In many of the things I found it said general anesthesia can be very dangerous for someone with sleep apnea as it can be difficult to wake them from it. I haven’t talked to my dr. About it yet but has anyone had issues with general anesthetic from their apnea? I just started using a CPAP three months ago and I actually sleeping less with it on. I wake up several times during the night and have seen it reach 18 but not sure if that matters.
RE: Tonsillectomy And general anesthesia
When I had an angiogram, Anesthesiologist simply put some supplemental oxygen (2 liters I think) on me via nasal cannula. I think in a tonsilectomy, surgeon goes in through the mouth. If surgeon goes in through the nose, this obviously wouldn't work then.
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RE: Tonsillectomy And general anesthesia
Thank you! I’m actually thinking about canceling the surgery, I’m going for a second opinion in a few weeks.
RE: Tonsillectomy And general anesthesia
I have had full anesthesia without problems. The CPAP is not really a complication because most of the time the anesthesiologist will use a ventilator during the procedure. You may be able to bring your machine and use it during recovery. Ask questions to resolve your concerns.
Jen, I would really like to see you use the free
OSCAR program and get some help on this forum concerning your therapy. Your profile suggests you are using wide-open settings of 4-20 and I'm sure it would help you if we optimized your settings and efficacy. Especially with complex apnea, we can help you to spot problems you can discuss with your doctor, and even let you know if you should be using a more advanced type of positive air pressure device. I hope you will consider it.
RE: Tonsillectomy And general anesthesia
I have had about 20 surgeries under general. NEVER a problem with sleep apnea. The usually tell me to bring the machine but they have never used it. They know how to take care of you.
