Anesthesia literally means “without feeling.” Anesthesia is applied to an area of the body that no longer has sensation. This can come about if the nerve to that area is diseased or injured. Doctors can produce this phenomenon using local anesthetics which block the electrical signal of nerves that carry the pain message up to the brain. Local anesthesia is produced by blockage of these peripheral nerves and often used in certain surgical procedures so the patient cannot feel the pain of the scalpel. Local anesthetics are often combined with cortisone and various orthopedic medical injections. General anesthesia is a term applied to rendering the patient unconscious and unable to feel pain anywhere in the body. This anesthetic unconscious state is induced by an anesthesiologist during major surgery.