What is 'intravenous sedation'?

What is 'intravenous sedation'?

Samuel Seelig (Anesthesiologist, Los Angeles, California) gives expert video advice on: What is an 'anesthesiologist'?; What happens immediately after surgery? and more...

Intravenous sedation is now referred to as TIVA or Total Intravenous Anesthesia. This is a deeper IV sedation. The patients are breathing spontaneously but they are in essence completely asleep. They will not respond to commands. Their airway is patent because they are breathing on their own and it does not have to be secured by the anesthegioligist through incubation or mass airways or any of the other devices we sometimes use.