Clonidine added to bupivacaine in neonatal spinal anesthesia: a prospective comparison in 124 preterm and term infants.

BACKGROUND: Spinal anesthesia (SA) remains the 'gold standard' in neonatal anesthesia for inguinal herniorrhaphy but its short duration impedes its usefulness. We previously demonstrated that clonidine prolongs neonatal SA without immediate side effects. METHODS: We conducted a prospective observational study of 124 infants undergoing herniorrhaphy under SA with bupivacaine and clonidine. Two cohorts, term (n = 57) and former preterm (n = 67) infants, were evaluated and compared with regard to episodes of apnea, desaturation, and bradycardia within 24 h of SA. RESULTS: In both groups, postoperative desaturation episodes were unchanged after SA, compared with the 12 preoperative hours, despite significantly increased apnea (P < 0.003 and <0.011 respectively). Transient bradycardias occurred in former preterm infants (P < 0.014): they spontaneously resolved in all cases. Mean arterial pressure did not vary during the study. Upper sensory level of SA, sedation on entering the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) and duration of stay in the PACU were similar in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical significance of short apneas, recovering spontaneously without desaturation, remains debatable. It is concluded that addition of clonidine to neonatal SA results in acceptable side effects. Side effects must be compared with the potential advantages before future recommendations.

Cervical epidural anesthesia in tetraplegia.

The primary result of this series is that each patient participated actively during his or her procedures. The concept of selective sensory block, therefore, which was the authors' overriding reason for using CEA in secondary tendon surgery, also may be beneficial to tetraplegic patients. Nystrom and Nystrom [2] also came to this conclusion. The use of CEA in tetraplegia is and must be used only in exceptional cases. If the usual surgical techniques seem to be inadequate for a given patient, and if the surgeon wishes to assess muscle tonicity and the effect of tenodesis in vivo, CEA may be used. The patients in the authors' series have been so satisfied with the technique that this dynamic approach to the tetraplegic upper leg may be as advantageous for the patient as it is for the surgeon.