Canadian Journal of Anesthesia, Vol 42, 1145-1163, Copyright © 1995 by Canadian Anesthesiologists' Society

ARTICLES

Spinal anaesthesia in obstetrics

P Morgan
Department of Anaesthesia, Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Spinal anaesthesia has been used since the 1800s but, due to a number of complications, the popularity of this technique has waxed and waned. In the 1950s, it was the most widely used method of anaesthesia and analgesia in obstetrics but it fell out of fashion with the arrival of the epidural technique which allowed a continuous method of delivering analgesia with relatively few complications. Hypotension and the high incidence of postdural puncture headaches were two reasons for the decline in the popularity of spinal anaesthesia in the young, otherwise healthy pregnant population. With the development of newer needles and bevel designs and methods whereby the incidence of hypotension can be minimized, spinal anaesthesia is making a reappearance in obstetrical anaesthesia spheres. The purpose of this article is to review the history, effects, technique, indications, contraindications and complications of this method of anesthesia as it applies to the obstetrical patient.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				I. M. Browne and D. J. Birnbach Neurocysticercosis: A New Differential in the Diagnosis of Postdural Puncture Headache Anesth. Analg., August 1, 2003; 97(2): 580 - 582. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				P. J. Morgan, S. Halpern, and J. Lam-McCulloch Comparison of maternal satisfaction between epidural and spinal anesthesia for elective Cesarean section Can J Anesth, October 1, 2000; 47(10): 956 - 961. [Abstract] [PDF]