anesthesia

noun an·es·the·sia \ ˌa-nəs-ˈthē-zhə \

Updated on: 23 May 2018

Definition of anesthesia

: loss of sensation with or without loss of consciousness

The patient was given intravenous medication to induce anesthesia.

— see general anesthesia, local anesthesia

See anesthesia defined for English-language learners

See anesthesia defined for kids

Examples of anesthesia in a Sentence

The patient was given an injection to induce anesthesia.

Recent Examples of anesthesia from the Web

What’s responsible for POCD — the drugs administered during anesthesia or the surgery itself?

— judith graham, Washington Post, "Surgery can cause cognitive losses in some seniors," 19 May 2018
Kolker agrees that costs can vary widely and can include fees from surgeons, anesthesia, and hospital and ambulatory surgery centers.

— erin nicole celletti, Allure, "The Complete Guide to Rhinoplasty," 15 May 2018
Another reader, Judy Politzer, had her colonoscopy without anesthesia but was billed for it anyway.

— sarah gantz, Philly.com, "Patient beware: Insurance covers colonoscopies in full - except when it doesn't," 20 Apr. 2018
Doctors can’t anesthetize the primates to perform an ultrasound on gorillas’ hearts because of the danger of anesthesia.

— michael harriot, The Root, "The Root’s Clapback Mailbag: Lions, Tigers and Wypipo, Oh My!," 20 Apr. 2018
This can be due to a variety of reasons including pain levels, anesthesia and post-surgical pain medications.

— chicagotribune.com, "Five lifestyle changes to lower high blood pressure," 15 Apr. 2018
The drugs administered during anesthesia or the surgery itself?

— judith graham, Washington Post, "What We Know And Don’t Know About Memory Loss After Surgery," 12 Apr. 2018
His father is an associate professor of anesthesia and critical care at Harvard Medical School.

— New York Times, "Anna Ward, Daniel Frendl," 8 Apr. 2018
Nectome’s pitch: connect terminal patients to life support, put them under with anesthesia, and then fill the body with a chemical embalming cocktail through the carotid arteries while the customer is still alive.

— kirsten korosec, Fortune, "MIT Ends Contract With Nectome, the 100% Fatal Brain Freeze Startup," 3 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'anesthesia.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of anesthesia

New Latin, from Greek anaisthēsia insensibility, from a- + aisthēsis perception, from aisthanesthai to perceive — more at audible

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1721

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

Other Medicine Terms

analgesia, angina, diabetes, hepatitis, homeopathy, logorrhea, palliate, pandemic

ANESTHESIA Defined for English Language Learners

anesthesia

noun

Definition of anesthesia for English Language Learners

medical : loss of feeling in a person's body or part of the body through the use of drugs

ANESTHESIA Defined for Kids

anesthesia

noun an·es·the·sia \ ˌa-nəs-ˈthē-zhə \

Definition of anesthesia for Students

: loss of feeling in all or part of the body with or without loss of consciousness The patient was given an injection before surgery to produce anesthesia.

Medical Dictionary

anesthesia

noun an·es·the·sia

variants: or chiefly British anaesthesia play \ˌan-əs-ˈthē-zhə\

medical Definition of anesthesia

1 : loss of sensation especially to touch usually resulting from a lesion in the nervous system or from some other abnormality

2 : loss of sensation and usually of consciousness without loss of vital functions artificially produced by the administration of one or more agents that block the passage of pain impulses along nerve pathways to the brain