Epidural analgesia followed by epidural hydroxyethyl starch prevented post-dural puncture headache: Twenty case reports and a review of the literature

BACKGROUNDAccidental dural puncture (ADP) and subsequent post-dural puncture headache (PDPH) remain common complications of epidural procedures for obstetric anesthesia and analgesia. No clear consensus exists on the best way to prevent PDPH after ADP.CASE SUMMARYWe report our findings in twenty parturients who underwent an incorporated strategy of epidural analgesia followed by epidural hydroxyethyl starch (HES) to prevent PDPH after ADP with a 16-gauge Tuohy needle during epidural procedures. ADP with a 16-gauge Tuohy needle occurred in nine parturients undergoing a cesarean section (CS) and in eleven parturients receiving labor analgesia. An epidural catheter was re-sited at the same or adjacent intervertebral space in all patients. After CS, the epidural catheter was used for postoperative pain relief over a 48-h period. After delivery in eleven cases, epidural infusion was maintained for 24 h. Thereafter, 15 mL of 6% HES 130/0.4 was administered via the epidural catheter immediately prior to catheter removal. None of the parturients developed PDPH or neurologic deficits over a follow-up period of at least two months to up to one year postpartum.CONCLUSIONAn incorporated strategy of epidural analgesia followed by epidural hydroxyethyl starch may have great efficacy in preventing PDPH after ADP.     

Fentanyl: clinical use as postoperative analgesic--epidural/intrathecal route.

The administration of epidural and intrathecal opioids for the management of postoperative pain is well established. Fentanyl, because of its greater lipophilicity, offers a number of advantages over morphine for epidural analgesia, including a lower incidence of side effects and reduced risk of delayed-onset respiratory depression. The relatively short duration of action of epidural fentanyl makes this agent more ideally suited for continuous infusion or patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA). The effective doses and adverse effects profile of epidural fentanyl are reasonably well understood. Because of the lack of spread through the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and hence the segmental nature of the analgesia achieved, location of epidural catheter placement is of paramount importance when this agent is used. Prolonged epidural infusion of fentanyl may result in high systemic concentrations not dissimilar to IV infusion, and, therefore, the greatest efficacy of epidural fentanyl administration may be in combination with low concentrations of bupivacaine, an approach that achieves a synergistic effect. 2-Chloroprocaine has been shown to antagonize epidural fentanyl analgesia. Intrathecal fentanyl for postoperative analgesia is limited by its short duration of action with single-bolus administration. The widespread international increase in the use of epidural fentanyl for postoperative analgesia promises further improvements and refinement in techniques.     

Pediatric analgesia with epidural fentanyl citrate administered by nursing staff.

Even though epidural analgesia is effective and has advantages over conventional postoperative analgesia, it is also labor intensive, requiring 24-hour supervision by an anesthesiologist. In an effort to decrease the manpower requirements, some hospitals allow the nursing staff to administer epidural narcotics to adult patients. In children, however, this practice has been limited. We retrospectively reviewed our experience over 12 months with this procedure. Epidural catheters (caudal, lumbar, or thoracic) were placed in 43 pediatric patients for acute and chronic pain management. All patients received a continuous epidural infusion of bupivacaine hydrochloride with fentanyl citrate. Eleven (26%) of the 43 patients required supplemental analgesia and were given 45 doses of epidural fentanyl. Adequate analgesia was achieved in all patients. No intravascular or intrathecal injections were noted, nor did any inadvertent epidural injections of medications occur. No patient had respiratory depression (respiratory rate less than 10% for age). We believe epidural administration of fentanyl by a carefully educated nursing staff is safe and effective in children.     

Approaches to anesthesia management of a patient during oncological pulmonary surgery

The results of lungs' excision in 82 patients made under a combined anesthesia of 2 types are comparatively analyzed. A surface low-level endobronchial narcosis by isoflurane was administered in 42 patients concurrently with a "high" epidural anesthesia by bupivakain and fentanyl. The other 40 patients received isoflurane and intravenous bolus injections of fentanyl concurrently with epidural anesthesia by morphine administered at the lumbar level. The epidural analgesia by bupivakain and fentanyl made at the thoracal level or by morphine made at the lumbar level was carried on in the early postoperative period. The results show both variations to ensure a reliable intraoperative anesthesia, a smooth recovery and a good postoperative analgesia. Better results were on the whole obtained by the variant of high epidural anesthesia/analgesia; however, the method of lumbar morphine administration has a number of advantages primarily related with its simplicity.     

Labor analgesia

Regional analgesia has become the most common method of pain relief used during labor in the United States. Epidural and spinal analgesia are two types of regional analgesia. With epidural analgesia, an indwelling catheter is directed into the epidural space, and the patient receives a continuous infusion or multiple injections of local anesthetic. Spinal injections are usually single injections into the intrathecal space. A combination of epidural and spinal analgesia, known as a walking epidural, also is available. This technique combines the rapid pain relief from the spinal regional block with the constant and consistent effects from the epidural block. It allows sufficient motor function for patients to ambulate. Complications with regional analgesia are uncommon, but may include postdural puncture headache. Rare serious complications include neurologic injury, epidural hematoma, or deep epidural infection. Regional analgesia increases the risk of instrument-assisted vaginal delivery, and family physicians should understand the contraindications and risks of complications. Continuous labor support (e.g., doula), systemic opioid analgesia, pudendal blocks, water immersion, sterile water injections into the lumbosacral spine, self-taught hypnosis, and acupuncture are other options for pain management during labor.     

Epidural Labor Analgesia: Continuous Infusion Versus Patient-Controlled Epidural Analgesia With Background Infusion Versus Without a Background Infusion

The purpose of this study was to compare the total epidural dose of 3 commonly used labor epidural modalities. After local institutional review board approval, 195 laboring parturients received an epidural catheter for labor analgesia. All patients received an initial bolus of 0.1% ropivacaine (10 mL) and fentanyl (100 microg). Maintenance of labor analgesia consisted of ropivacaine 0.1% with fentanyl 2 microg/mL. Patients were then randomly assigned into 3 groups: Group 1 (continuous epidural infusion [CEI]), continuous infusion at 10 mL/h; group 2 (CEI + patient-controlled epidural analgesia [PCEA]), CEI at 5 mL/h with a demand dose of 5 mL allowed every 20 minutes with a 20 mL/h maximum dose; group 3 (PCEA), demand doses only of 5 mL every 15 minutes with a 20 mL/h maximum dose. Measured variables included total epidural dose, total bolus requests and boluses delivered, number of staff interventions, pain Visual Analog Scale (VAS; 0-100), modified Bromage scores, stage I and II labor duration, delivery outcome, and maternal satisfaction after delivery. No differences were noted with respect to pain VAS, modified Bromage scores, stage I and II labor duration, number of staff interventions, delivery outcome, and maternal satisfaction score. Total infusion dose was lower in demand dose only PCEA compared with CEI and CEI + PCEA groups (P = < .01). Demand dose-only PCEA results in less total epidural dose compared with CEI and CEI + PCEA without affecting labor duration, motor block, pain VAS, maternal and neonatal outcomes, and maternal satisfaction. PERSPECTIVE: This article compares 3 commonly used labor epidural delivery modalities (traditional continuous epidural infusion, patient-controlled epidural analgesia with a background infusion, and demand dose-only patient-controlled epidural analgesia). Benefits in epidural dose reduction with demand dose only PCEA does not translate into improved maternal and neonatal outcome.     

Epidural and intrathecal morphine in intensive care units

Analgesia and sedation for patients in intensive care units (ICU) who require mechanical ventilation are most commonly provided by intermittent i.v. injections of opiates and benzodiazepines. However, the technique has a number of disadvantages. Also, in many case these drugs are inadequate, even in large doses, and muscle relaxants may be necessary for patient respirator coordination. The analgesic effect of epidural and intrathecal morphine was studied in 24 ICU patients requiring controlled ventilation. In spite of large doses of phenoperidine, diazepam and a number of other analgesics and sedatives, all patients were restless, agitated and coordinated poorly with the respirator. Through an indwelling epidural catheter morphine (4 mg) was injected intermittently as required in 11 patients and as a continuous infusion (20–40 mg/day) in five patients. In eight patients morphine (2–4 mg) was injected intrathecally as a single injection. Both epidural and intrathecal morphine gave potent analgesia and good patient respirator coordination. The duration of analgesia was shortest after intermittent injections of epidural morphine and longest after intrathecal morphine. However, continuous infusion of morphine in the epidural catheter appears to be the most practical method. In patients with multiple trauma and in patients where frequent assessment of the level of consciousness is important this technique is superior to parenteral analgesic sedative combinations. Intrathecal morphine may be indicated in patients in a compromised position. The daily analgesic requirement can be reduced by about 10–100 times by the use of epidural and intrathecal morphine respectively.     

Epidural fentanyl by continuous infusion for relief of postoperative pain

Data from the charts of 40 patients in whom a continuous epidural infusion of fentanyl had been used to effect postoperative pain relief were retrospectively reviewed. Of these patients, 39 out of 40 (97.5%) reported adequate analgesia at an average fentanyl infusion rate of 1.3 micrograms/kg/h. After discharge from the postanesthesia recovery room, each patient was sent to a general medical-surgical nursing floor with standard orders for medications to be administered as required. The overall incidence of side effects was low, and, in particular, respiratory depression was not noted. In our experience, this analgesia technique is safe, effective, and could be readily introduced into most community hospital settings.     

Epidural analgesia—experience of 5628 patients in a large teaching hospital derived through audit

A prospective audit of 5628 surgical patients was conducted to determine the success, failure and complication rates associated with postoperative epidural analgesia. The majority of patients received infusions of bupivacaine 0.1% with hydromorphone 20 μg/cm³. However, elderly and frail patients received plain bupivacaine 0.1% or bupivacaine 0.1% with fentanyl 2 μg/cm³. Postoperatively, epidural infusions were selected, adjusted or terminated as indicated. Termination of epidural analgesia was defined as either success, if the infusion was continued until there was no further need for epidural analgesia, or failure, if the infusion was discontinued prematurely due to problems with the catheter or treatment that could not be controlled through intervention. Twenty-two percent of patients had their epidural catheter removed prematurely due to either technical (catheter) or treatment (medication) problems that could not be resolved. Technical problems with the catheter caused 807 failures (14% of all patients). Almost 70% of the technical failures (N=554) were due to catheter dislodgement. Treatment problems resulted in 451 failures (8% of all patients). The majority of treatment failures were due to inadequate analgesia despite functioning catheters. This audit has proved useful in maintaining standards of care and in identifying problems with postoperative epidural therapy that still need improvement. It allows a balanced assessment of the value of this treatment in the setting of a large teaching hospital and is the largest reported series of postoperative epidural hydromorphone analgesia.     

硬脊膜穿破硬膜外阻滞在妊娠期高血压疾病产妇分娩镇痛中的应用

目的探讨硬脊膜穿破硬膜外阻滞在妊娠期高血压疾病产妇分娩镇痛中的应用。方法回顾性将2017年8月至2018年8月于北京妇产医院就诊收治的158例接受分娩镇痛的妊娠期高血压疾病产妇作为研究对象,根据产妇不同的麻醉方式将其分为腰-硬联合镇痛组(n=52)、自控硬膜外镇痛组(n=54)和硬脊膜穿破复合硬膜外镇痛组(n=52)。于镇痛前、镇痛后1 min、5 min、10 min和60 min行视觉模拟评分法(VAS评分)。记录三组舒芬太尼镇痛用量、病人自控镇痛(PCA)次数和首次PCA时间、镇痛不良反应及分娩方式及产程。结果三组产妇镇痛后1 min、5 min、10 min和60 min VAS评分均明显低于镇痛前(P<0.05);腰-硬联合镇痛组和硬脊膜穿破复合硬膜外镇痛组镇痛后1 min、5 min均明显低于自控硬膜外镇痛组(P<0.05)。硬脊膜穿破复合硬膜外镇痛组和腰-硬联合镇痛组舒芬太尼镇痛用量和PCA次数较自控硬膜外镇痛组明显减少,首次PCA时间明显延长(P<0.05)。硬脊膜穿破复合硬膜外镇痛组较自控硬膜外镇痛组产前发热例数明显减少,第一产程活跃期明显缩短,器械助产例数明显减少(P<0.05);腰-硬联合镇痛组较自控硬膜外镇痛组胎心减慢和瘙痒例数明显增加,第一产程活跃期明显缩短,器械助产例数明显减少(P<0.05)。硬脊膜穿破复合硬膜外镇痛组较腰-硬联合镇痛组产前发热、胎心减慢和瘙痒例数明显减少,剖宫产例数明显减少(P<0.05)。结论硬脊膜穿破硬膜外阻滞在妊娠期高血压产妇分娩镇痛中的应用效果良好,安全性也较高。     

Negative aspiration for cerebral spinal fluid does not assure proper placement of epidural catheter.

Inadvertent subarachnoid injection of a local anesthetic during the conduct of epidural anesthesia may have a devastating effect on the patient. The incidence of dural puncture with an epidural catheter has been reported to range from 0.5% to 0.9%. This case report demonstrates that, despite negative aspiration of cerebral spinal fluid from the catheter, subarachnoid injection of a local anesthetic can occur.     

连续髂筋膜阻滞和硬膜外阻滞下行全髋置换后镇痛的比较

背景：硬膜外持续镇痛曾被认为是下肢术后镇痛的金标准,其效果确切,全身不良反应较少,临床上普遍采用。但此法有低血压及尿潴留等不良反应,且患者在术后常规需应用低分子肝素抗凝,有增加硬膜外血肿的可能性,限制了硬膜外镇痛的临床使用。目前超声引导下连续髂筋膜腔隙阻滞技术的相关研究报道甚少。 目的：评价连续髂筋膜间隙阻滞和连续硬膜外阻滞两种不同镇痛方法对全髋关节置换后镇痛效果和关节功能恢复的影响。 方法：将60例择期行全髋关节置换患者分为2组：连续髂筋膜间隙阻滞组和连续硬膜外镇痛组（n=30）。两组患者在全身麻醉诱导前均接受预注量,连续髂筋膜间隙阻滞组经髂筋膜间隙注入0.25%罗哌卡因30 mL,连续硬膜外阻滞组经硬膜外导管注入0.20%罗哌卡因10 mL,均留置导管。待镇痛效果明确后,全麻插管。术毕两组分别经髂筋膜间隙、硬膜外连接镇痛泵持续给药,未使用术后自控镇痛单次给药。若疼痛难以忍受时,视其疼痛程度,予补救镇痛（帕瑞昔布20-40 mg/次）。记录目测类比评分、帕瑞昔布补救剂量、麻醉并发症、髋关节Harris评分、下床时间和住院时间。 结果与结论：目测类比评分、额外追加的镇痛药量、Harris 评分、住院日两组无明显差别。但是下床时间连续髂筋膜间隙阻滞组早于连续硬膜外阻滞组,而且连续髂筋膜间隙阻滞组并发症明显低于连续硬膜外阻滞组。提示全髋关节置换后,两种镇痛方式均可提供满意的术后镇痛效果,髋关节功能可得到良好的恢复;但连续髂筋膜间隙阻滞并发症少且有利于患者早期下床活动,对于髋关节置换后镇痛是更好的选择。     

Efficacy of thoracic epidural analgesia for laparoscopic cholecystectomy

Introduction Postoperative pain is a commonly observed phenomenon after laparoscopic procedures. The use of new low-solubility inhalation anaesthetics leads to faster induction and recovery, but the effect of analgesics on pain when used with them is not sufficiently known. Optimally, analgesic therapy should be started in sufficient time as to be effective at the point of emergence from anaesthesia. We compared the effectiveness of intravenous and epidural analgesia in patients undergoing general anaesthesia with sevoflurane for laparoscopic cholecystectomy in the early postoperative period. Methods Thirty adult patients with American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status I–II, scheduled for laparoscopic cholecystectomy, were enrolled in this study. The patients in the intravenous group (n=15) received general anaesthesia with sevoflurane and intravenous infusion of 1.5 μg/ml/kg/h fentanyl analgesia followed by postoperative intravenous infusion of 1.0 μg/ml/kg/h fentanyl, supplied by a programmed continuous analgesia pump. The patients in the epidural group (n=15) had combined epidural analgesia with 0.125% bupivacaine plus 50 μg fentanyl and general anaesthesia with sevoflurane, followed by continuous epidural infusion of 4 ml/h bupivacaine 0.125% plus 50 μg fentanyl. Visual analogue scores and the patients’ needs for analgesics and were recorded.     

Efficacy of various epidural analgesia regimens after lung surgery

A prospective study included 90 adult patients undergoing thoracic surgery. After placing an epidural catheter at the Th4-Th5 level, all the patients were randomized in 3 groups. Twenty-nine patients received controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) with fentanyl, 2 microg/ml, in 0.2% bupivacaine solution (Group 1). In other groups, these analgesics were given either as bolus infections (Group 2; n = 30) or as a continuous epidural infusion of fentanyl, 2 microg/ml, in 0.2% bupivacane solution (Group 3; n = 27). Pain scores and the incidence of adverse effects were assessed within the first 24 hours after surgery. The data were compared using the Student's t-test and x2 test with Bonferroni correction; p < 0.017 was regarded as statistically significant. The VAS scores in coating were significantly lower in Group 1 than in Groups 2 and 3. The need for epidural opioids for adequate analgesia within the first 24 hours after surgery was significantly less in Group 1 than in Groups 2 and 3. There were no excessive sedation episodes in all the groups. In Group 2, the incidence of nausea was 20%. These adverse reactions were not found during PCEA and continuous infusion (p < 0.017). Opioid-induced pruritis was mostly (23%) observed in Group 2. Thoracic PCEA with fentanyl-bupivacaine solution provided adequate postoperative analgesia after thoracotomy and reduced the need for opioids. In addition, PCEA reduced the incidence of adverse reactions of opioids.     

Sufentanil: clinical use as postoperative analgesic--epidural/intrathecal route.

Although morphine and fentanyl remain the predominant epidural opioids, sufentanil offers some unique advantages. Because of its greater lipophilicity and mu-receptor binding capacity, sufentanil has a faster onset of action and longer duration than epidural fentanyl. Compared with morphine, sufentanil has been associated with a lower incidence of side effects, particularly delayed respiratory depression. The effective doses and adverse effects profile of epidural sufentanil are relatively well understood. Ventilatory depression is minimal with both bolus and continuous administration. Rapid vascular uptake after large epidural bolus, however, has been associated with acute-onset respiratory depression and even respiratory arrest. Sufentanil is more ideally suited than morphine to continuous epidural administration. The faster onset in comparison with fentanyl may make sufentanil the ideal agent for patient-controlled epidural analgesia. The synergistic effect of combined sufentanil and low-concentration bupivacaine offers advantages over sufentanil alone. High doses of epidural sufentanil have been uniquely associated with cessation of shivering and hypothermia. As with fentanyl, the intrathecal administration of sufentanil for postoperative analgesia is limited by its short duration of action.     

Thunderclap headache caused by minimally invasive medical procedures: description of 2 cases

We report 2 very unusual cases of thunderclap headache complicating minimally invasive medical procedures. In the first case headache developed as the consequence of a pneumocephalus caused by an inadvertent intrathecal puncture during oxygen-ozone therapy for lumbar disk herniation. The second case involved intracranial hypotension, caused by the persistence of the needle, used for epidural anesthesia, and then penetrated in the subarachnoid space.     

头高位等比重腰-硬联合麻醉在重度子痫前期剖宫产术中的应用

目的：探讨头高位等比重腰-硬联合麻醉（CSEA）应用于重度子痫前期剖宫产术的效果。方法将120例重度子痫前期患者随机分为CSEA组和硬膜外阻滞（EA）组各60例。CSEA组采用头高15＆#176;左侧卧位,于L2～3穿刺蛛网膜注入等比重布比卡因7.5 mg行蛛网膜下隙阻滞（腰麻）;其后置钢丝硬膜外导管于硬膜外腔行EA。EA组只行EA。观察两组麻醉起效时间、麻醉后3 min麻醉平面、切皮时麻醉平面、新生儿Apgar评分、麻醉效果、血流动力学变化、不良反应等。结果 CSEA组麻醉起效时间、麻醉平面出现时间均快于EA组（P＜0.01）,麻醉效果优于EA组（P＜0.01）。两组新生儿Apgar评分以及麻醉后的血压、心电图、血氧饱和度（SPO2）、心率比较差异无统计学意义（P＞0.05）。两组心动过缓、呼吸困难、神经并发症等不良反应比较差异无统计学意义（P＞0.05）。结论头高位等比重CSEA应用于重度子痫前期剖宫产术,麻醉起效快,血流动力学较稳定,母婴安全,比单用EA效果好。     

Epidural analgesia in surgical treatment of scoliosis

The article provides data on the use of a two-level epidural analgesia as a component of general anesthesia and postoperative analgesia in surgical treatment of scoliosis on the front and back structures of the spine. The study included 150 patients aged from 12 to 25 years. All the patients were divided into 4 groups. The patients of the 2-nd and 3-rd groups before the main stage was carried out an epidural analgesia with 0.75% ropivacaine and sevorane-propofol general anaesthesia . In the 1-st and 4-th group carried out an propofol-fentanyl TIVA or inhalational sevorane-fentanyl one. The best result were obtained in the 3-rd group, where they carried out the infusion 0.2% ropivacaine with fentanyl (1 microg/ml) and epinephrine (2 microg/ml) via 2 epidural catheters. It was noted decreased blood loss by more than 50% in groups with epidural analgesia.     

舒芬太尼复合罗哌卡因用于开胸术后硬膜外镇痛的疗效

【目的】观察舒芬太尼或芬太尼复合罗哌卡因用于开胸手术后硬膜外自控镇痛（PCEA）的临床镇痛效果和安全性。【方法】ASAⅠ～Ⅱ级,全麻复合连续硬膜外阻滞麻醉行开胸手术病人70例,随机分为两组（n=35）,使用0．75μg／ml舒芬太尼（S组）或3μg／ml芬太尼（F组）复合0．125％罗哌卡因,术后行PCEA。镇痛泵设定持续背景剂量2mL／h、PCA每次0．5mL,锁定时间15min。观察病人术后镇痛效果,记录术后4h、8h、12h、24h、48h各时间点的疼痛评分（VAS）、镇静评分、PCA使用次数、不良反应和病人满意度。【结果】S组术后8h、24h和48hVAS评分明显低于F组（P〈0．05）;S组各时间点镇静评分均明显大于F组（P〈0．05）;S组PCA按压次数显著低于F组（P〈0．05）;S组病人对PCA的满意度明显高于F组（P〈0．05）。两组恶心、呕吐发生率低,呼吸抑制相比无明显差异。【结论】舒芬太尼复合罗哌卡因用于开胸手术后PCEA,镇痛安全有效,镇痛镇静效果优于芬太尼,不良反应程度较轻。