Management of labor analgesia in a patient with acute myeloid leukemia
Kelly G Elterman1, Jonathan R Meserve, Martha Wadleigh
1From the *Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative, and Pain Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts; and †Hematology-Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute/Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
The anesthetic implications of acute leukemia in pregnancy have not been reported. We describe the anesthetic management of a laboring primigravida at 34 weeks' gestation with new-onset acute myeloid leukemia. With multidisciplinary consultation, we recommend that neuraxial anesthesia be avoided in new-onset acute myeloid leukemia due to the risk of introducing malignant cells into the central nervous system, which can spread the disease and complicate management. We discuss the use of a fentanyl patient-controlled analgesia and dexmedetomidine as a method of labor analgesia, and the potential benefits of the latter medication in the obstetric population.
The anesthetic implications of acute leukemia in pregnancy have not been reported. We describe the anesthetic management of a laboring primigravida at 34 weeks' gestation with new-onset acute myeloid leukemia. With multidisciplinary consultation, we recommend that neuraxial anesthesia be avoided in new-onset acute myeloid leukemia due to the risk of introducing malignant cells into the central nervous system, which can spread the disease and complicate management. We discuss the use of a fentanyl patient-controlled analgesia and dexmedetomidine as a method of labor analgesia, and the potential benefits of the latter medication in the obstetric population.
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