Types, Risks, and What to Expect

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On April 3, 2025

There are several types of anesthesia, which are used for different purposes and have different effects on the body.

Local Anesthesia

Local anesthesia causes numbness in and around a small, specific area of the body where the anesthetic medicine — typically lidocaine — is applied.

Unlike other forms of anesthesia, local anesthesia can be performed by any medical professional and does not require specialized training. It’s commonly used for minor procedures, such as to block pain from a tooth during dental work or an area of skin that requires stitches.

During local anesthesia, you remain fully awake and alert, and while you may not feel pain in the affected area, you may feel pressure.

Regional Anesthesia

Administered by an anesthetist, regional anesthesia blocks pain in a larger region of the body, such as an arm, leg, or the entire lower half of the body. It targets larger nerves that transmit signals across an entire area of the body.

Hand surgery, for example, requires regional anesthesia, given as a shot of numbing agent near the nerves in the armpit, causing your whole arm to go numb. Epidurals during childbirth are another common example.

Unless you also receive a sedative, regional anesthesia with medications like lidocaine, bupivacaine, or ropivacaine alone will not cause you to sleep.

Monitored Sedation

Sedation, sometimes known as monitored anesthesia care and twilight sedation, relaxes the body, reduces anxiety, and induces sleepiness. The level of sedation you experience depends on the procedure and how you respond to the medications, which include midazolam, propofol, and ketamine.

Minimal sedation relaxes you while leaving you awake and able to respond to questions or instructions.
Moderate sedation will make you sleepy, but you can be awakened easily and interact with your healthcare team, though you may not remember any of it.
Deep sedation will give you a nice nap (you won’t be completely unconscious but you won’t be able to remember it, either); while you can breathe on your own, you will need close monitoring and may need to be given oxygen because the medications can cause your breathing to become slower or shallower.

Sedation is often combined with local or regional anesthesia for pain control and is useful for colonoscopies and complex dental procedures like wisdom teeth removal.

General Anesthesia

Used for major, invasive surgeries — such as those that are time-consuming like back surgery or involve internal organs — general anesthesia is likely what you imagine when you hear the word “anesthesia.” It affects your entire body, making you unconscious and preventing you from feeling pain or even moving.

Many body functions will slow down during general anesthesia and may need help to work effectively — for instance, you won’t be able to breathe on your own and will require a ventilator to breathe for you. General anesthesia requires the same medications as sedation, just in higher doses, and you will remain asleep while the drugs are in your system.