Look Ma, it’s Pain-free Cosmetic Surgery

Jul 4

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We hear about painless surgery and we blink at the thought if “look ma, no pain” is an honest statement of utter comfort -- especially from one who just had a major neck-lift.

From simple to complicated plastic surgeries, anesthesia has been a great tool to keep a patient asleep, nearly immobile and out of pain. But once someone wakes up, anesthesia does little to curb the pain caused by invasive procedures.

In recent years, the medical field has been advancing and heralding pain-free surgery with some experts saying the possibility is not so far off. So those who are timid about having surgeries for fear of pain shouldn't put it off: advances in pain management and a new focus on patient comfort are making many procedures nearly pain-free.

In 2003, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center opened a pain center that deals with chronic and surgical pain. One of its surgical techniques is a nerve block, an injection that blocks pain in a particular region of the body. It is being used during surgery and increasingly for postoperative pain management as well.

Fast track to 2006, the banner of Chicago Tribune on June 27 read “Plastic surgery without aid of major anesthesia an option”

Oh, can they come any sincere this time?

The article cited a recent neck-lift procedure done on a 55-year old Chicagoan who claimed that she was all awake during the operation and, accordingly -- “They had me lie down and listen to music…the idea was to feel like I'd had a couple of martinis. I was totally numb, yet awake, so I knew what was going on, and the doctor was constantly asking if I was OK.”

Just the same, the technique was disclosed: “What happens is the fat under the skin in the face or neck is slowly injected with a mixture of saltwater, the painkiller lidocaine and adrenaline, or epinephrine, which stops the bleeding. Enough fluid is injected so that the skin is taut.”

And explained -- by Dr. Edward Lack, president-elect of the Chicago-based American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery -- that the technique was first used in liposuction. Now tumescent anesthesia, as it is known, can be used for everything from facelifts to breast augmentations.

Less of the hangover feeling, little pain, or no pain at all - the vast majority of pain-dreading folks all welcome this advancement in the field of cosmetic surgery.

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