A local anaesthetic numbs a small part of your body. It is used when the nerves can easily be reached either by drops or injections. You stay conscious and may feel the surgeon touching your eye or pressure on the eye, but not pain.
If you feel pain, you must inform the surgeon. It is easy to top up the local anaesthetic in almost all circumstances.
This is achieved by administering numbing drops to anaesthetise the eye.
You will be awake during the operation and will be aware of a bright light, but you will not be able to see what is happening. You might feel the surgeon touching your eye, or pressure on the eye, but not pain.
This type of anaesthetic is suitable for some simple operations, but not all.
This could either be a sub-tenons block or a peribulbar block. The former employs a technique where we administer numbing drops to anaesthetise the front of the eye before putting local anaesthetic behind the eye (where the nerves that supply sensation to the eye are present). This will freeze your eye and render it immobile for the surgery. The effects of the local anaesthetic will last for several hours. The latter is done not so frequently, and your anaesthetist will discuss the block in further detail.
All procedures have associated risks. Allergic reactions, sight and life-threatening complications can occur but are extremely rare. You can discuss specific concerns with your surgeon or anaesthetist.
For more information on your anaesthetic please follow this link.
Author: Dr. S. Vijayan, Consultant Anaesthetist
Review date: July 2028