ghuinness

Hope it's okay to ask this.

I need hand surgery on tuesday - inserting some pins and such to correct a weekend accident.

When surgery was first advised I asked about local vs general. The PA said that might be an option but was a little surprised by my request. Didn't say too much to guide me one way or another. He had heard of this approach being used but didn't know if the local surgeon ever did it this way.

Later I spoke with a physiotherapist who said: " do not do local when pins are involved. General is better unless you have a high threshold for pain".

Met the surgeon today. He said it's day surgery so I immediately asked about local. He said blocking from the shoulder down is an option. Unlike the PA he didn't seem surprised, however the nurses were.

I am getting mixed signals and maybe my expectation of local is wrong in this instance. Am I missing something?

thanks