A Properly Administered Anesthetic Can Reduce Anxiety and Keep Patients Responsive During Surgery.
Proper cancer-prevention strategies may include regularly scheduled biopsies that take place under the supervision of a trained surgeon. Although biopsies are highly reliable tests, the process of removing tissue from a patient's body with a needle can be painful, especially when the procedure involves more sensitive tissues. Prostate biopsies puncture the sensitive reproductive and excretory tissues, and sedation often is used to reduce the pain for patients. Of the many different benzodiazepine depressants used to sedate patients, midazolam is one of the safer and more potent medications.
Benzodiazepines
Benzodiazepines are prescribed as depressant medications for their effect on the neurotransmitter GABA, or gamma-aminobutyric acid. GABA is a motor-inhibiting neurotransmitter, and reduces nerve sensations and impulses throughout the body. Benzodiazepines enhance the effects of GABA in the body, causing both a sedative effect and an anti-anxiety effect. Popular benzodiazepines include midazolam, valium, Librium and Ativan.
Midazolam
Aside from biopsies, midazolam also is utilized as a syrup medication or intravenous anesthetic for dental surgeries and other medical procedures requiring local anesthetics. Midazolam is injected before or during surgery into the muscle tissue surrounding the incision. Midazolam causes conscious sedation, a state where the patient is semi-responsive during surgery but will lose the memory of the procedure through amnesia.
In a clinical study published in a July 2008 issue of the International Journal of Urological Nursing, midazolam was found to relieve the pain of prostate biopsies better than lignocaine, an antiarrhythmic drug that's also used to anesthetize patients during surgery. Intranasal doses have received limited clinical studies, but have shown a bioavailability of 72 percent. Bioavailability refers to the amount of an administered dose that is actually able to enter the body's circulation. Midazolam syrup is available for sedation of child patients before surgery.
Prostate Biopsy
A prostate biopsy is a diagnostic procedure that provides a pathologist with samples of prostate tissue to determine if the organ is cancerous. A prostate biopsy is recommended for any man who has a high PSA (prostate specific antigen) test score. Elevated levels of PSA in the bloodstream are generally indicative of prostate malfunction or disease. The American Cancer Society (ACS) recommends that men over age 50 should have their PSA levels tested once a year. African-American men, or men with a family history of prostate cancer, should begin yearly testing at 40.
During a biopsy, a doctor will penetrate the prostate tissue with specialized biopsy needles in order to take up to 15 different samples. The procedure can last up to a half-hour. Anesthetics are recommended by the ACS to reduce the pain caused by the procedure. According to the ACS, the use of antiarrhythmics and benzodiazepines reduced the rate of pain of prostate biopsy from more than half to just 7 percent during clinical trial. If a prostate biopsy detects cancerous tissue, the patient will be immediately put on a course of treatment, including chemotherapy and other medications.
Side Effects
Under proper professional supervision, midazolam injections cause side effects in about 5 to 10 percent of patients. Common side effects include blurred vision, blood pressure changes, dizziness, coughing, nausea and dry mouth. Unless these symptoms persist, the procedure should be continued. Surgery should be ended if severe allergic reactions, such as rashes or hives, are experienced, or the patient starts showing signs of muscle tremor, chest pain, agitation or irregular breathing habits.
Tags: during surgery, pain prostate, prostate biopsy, prostate biopsy, prostate tissue, reduce pain
