Before the Surgery
Before the procedure, you and your child will meet with an anesthesiologist. You will be asked questions about your child's heart history, allergies, medications and other health issues. It is important to let the anesthesiologist know of any problems with anesthesia in the past and any recent illnesses.
Before going to sleep for a procedure, many children are sedated with a medication taken by mouth. This helps to relax the child. It also makes the separation process from the parents' smoother. These medicines can cause the child to forget what happened.
During the Surgery
In most children, general anesthesia starts by breathing anesthetic gas through a mask. In older children, general anesthesia will be started through an IV.
For most procedures, a breathing tube will be placed after your child is asleep. Your child will be on a ventilator (a breathing machine) during the procedure. The specific anesthetic agents your child gets will depend on your child's heart disease, the procedure performed, and if continued sedation and mechanical ventilation will be needed after the procedure.
After the Surgery
If a heart-lung bypass machine is used, most children are kept sedated with a breathing tube in place for awhile after the procedure. These patients are cared for in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU).
During this time, treating your child’s pain is important. Some children are kept on a continuous infusion of pain medicine. Others are given pain medications as needed. In older children, a patient-controlled analgesic (PCA) pump may be used to help control pain. We will talk to you about this if it is needed for your child