"Atraumatic" Sprotte needle reduces the incidence of post-lumbar puncture headaches
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 3, 2026
Pre-Chiasmatic, Single Injection of Autologous Blood to Induce Experimental Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in a Rat Model
Published on: June 18, 2021
M Strupp1, O Schueler, A Straube
1Department of Neurology, University of Munich, Klinikum Grosshadern, Munich, Germany. mstrupp@nefo.med.uni-muenchen.de
Abstract:
Post-lumbar puncture headache (PLPH) is best explained by spinal fluid leakage due to delayed closure of a dural defect. In a prospective, randomized, double-blind study, taking into consideration all known methodological problems, the authors compared the incidence of PLPH using the "atraumatic" Sprotte needle vs the "traumatic" Quincke needle. Of the 230 patients included in the final analysis, 24.4% of patients in the "traumatic" group developed PLPH, whereas only 12.2% of patients in the "atraumatic" group did (p < 0.05). Therefore, use of the "atraumatic" Sprotte needle for lumbar puncture is recommended.
