Anesthesiology | Anesthesia

MaineHealth anesthesia providers are committed to providing you with a safe, comfortable experience during surgery or other medical procedures.

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What is anesthesia?

Anesthesia is a way to control pain during a surgery or procedure by using medicine called anesthetics. It can help control your breathing, blood pressure, blood flow, and heart rate and rhythm. Anesthesia may be used to:

• Relax you
• Block pain
• Make you sleepy or forgetful
• Make you unconscious for your surgery

The three main types of anesthesia are:

• Local anesthesia, which numbs one small area of the body
• Regional anesthesia, which blocks pain in a larger area of the body, such as an entire arm or leg
• General anesthesia, which causes a person to become unconscious so that surgery can take place

Anesthesiology care team

• Anesthesiologists are medical doctors with specialized training in an accredited anesthesiology residency program. Anesthesiologists ensure patients undergo surgery safely and comfortably. Anesthesiologists use specialized techniques during surgery to accomplish this. Anesthesiologists are also experts in management of pain.
• CRNAs (certified registered nurse anesthetists) are advanced practice registered nurses who have had specialized training in an accredited nurse anesthesiology graduate program. CRNAs provide anesthesia in collaboration with surgeons, dentists, podiatrists, physician anesthesiologists and other qualified health care professionals to ensure patients are safe and comfortable during surgery and procedures. CRNAs use specialized techniques during surgery to accomplish this and are experts in delivering safe anesthesia.