SPINAL ANAESTHESIA WITH GLUCOSE-FREE 0.5% BUPIVACAINE: EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT VOLUMES

The effects of different volumes (1.5, 2, 3, and 4ml) of glucose-free0.5% bupivacaine used for spinal anaesthesia were compared in40 patients scheduled for urological surgery. The blocks wereperformed with the patients in the sitting position. The timeto maximum cephalad spread of analgesia varied between 13 and18.5 min. A significant difference was found in cephalad spreadbetween the 1.5-and 2-ml groups and the 3-and 4-ml groups. Theduration of analgesia increased, the time to complete motorblockade of the lower limbs decreased and the frequency of completemotor blockade increased with increasing volume. Spinal anaesthesiawith 3–4ml of glucose-free 0.5% bupivacaine proved satisfactoryfor transurethral resection of the prostate.