Expert: Dr Ian Jackson - please note UK based - 3/23/2009

Question
What methods can anesthesiologist  us to prevent contractions of skeletal muscle tissue during an operation?

Answer
Hi Courtney
The technique used depends on the operation and degree of relaxation of the muscle needed. For a large number of operations there is no need to give any specific muscle relaxant. The agents we use to anaesthetise the patient work on the brain to suppress conscious level to a point where there is no skeletal muscle movement i.e. movement of muscles that are under voluntary control. So the patient is relaxed to a degree. However other muscles such as the chest wall muscles and the diaphragm continue to work. If the patient is having a larger operation which for example involves work in the abdomen (stomach) then the anaesthetist has to then give a muscle relaxant which paralyses all the patients muscles for a period. This makes the surgery much easier. Finally we can use special local anaesthetic techniques to paralyse certain areas of the body.
Hope this helps.
Kind regards
Dr Ian Jackson