Epidural anesthesia for a patient with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, bronchial asthma and hypothyroidism

The patient was a 75-year-old male with a history of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT), bronchial asthma and hypothyroidism simultaneously. Epidural anesthesia was planned for the open reduction of a femur fracture. CMT is one of the hereditary motor and sensory neuropathies, and there may be no report in Japan that epidural anesthesia was applied to a patient with CMT. It has been suggested that neuromuscular disease is a contraindication to epidural anesthesia, but the patient had such a severe gait disturbance that he might not be able to walk by himself postoperatively without any aggravation of the neuropathy. In addition, there existed the other simultaneous complications, especially severe respiratory insufficiency. Therefore we dared to administer epidural anesthesia. The epidural anesthesia was safely performed during the operation and there was no untoward effects postoperatively.