Sleep Paralysis and Anaesthesia

[w_nicole]

I suffer from sleep paralysis, and next month I have to have my wisdom teeth taken out.  I have never had anaesthesia before and I was wondering if sleep paralysis sufferers are more likely to be victims of anaesthesia awareness.  Should I notify my anesthesiologist about my disorder?

[bhumi123]

Hi,
YES, you should notify the anesthesiologist about your disorder for sure. Also you dont have to be worried as it is not true that sleep paralysis patients have anaesthesia awareness. Discuss with your anesthesiologist what type of anesthesia are they palnning - local / topical / general (rare for a tooth extraction). Also tell him about your being anxious and see if he prescribes you an antianxiety medication like alprazolam for one or two days before the extraction. Discussion in detail with your attending anesthesiologist should surely put your mind to ease.Also discuss about the post operative pain killers that need to be taken. Goodluck.

[Suri123]

Hi, it is always better to inform your anasthetist about your concern but i doubt wil he do under general anasthesia as usually a local infiltration itself is sufficient for extraction. discuss with you dentist also.

[w_nicole]

Well, my doctor said that I would be sedated, so isn't that general anaesthesia?  I'm not having them simply pulled; they're being cut out since they haven't grown in yet.  

[DrBhumikaMD]

Hi,
Sedation is not general aneasthesia. Sedation will put you in a deep sleep state and you will be simultaneously given pain killers for pain relief. General anesthesia would involve paralysing your respiratory muscles and putting in a tube in your wind pipe for artificial ventilation. Dont worry, discuss all this in detail with your anesthesiologist and dental surgeon. All your doubts should be cleared so that you are not very anxious prior to the procedure. Goodluck.