Effect of the lithotomy position on spinal anesthesia with hyperbaric tetracaine

This study was performed to determine the effects of lithotomy position on the spread of analgesia and hemodynamics following spinal anesthesia with 0.5% hyperbaric tetracaine. Thirty patients who underwent hysterectomy due to myoma uteri were studied. All patients received spinal anesthesia in the left lateral decubitus position and were turned supine immediately after intrathecal administration of the drug. Fifteen patients were then placed in the horizontal lithotomy position within 10 s, and the remaining 15 were kept in the horizontal supine position for 30 min. There were no significant differences between the groups in mean arterial pressure, heart rate, cardiac output, and in the cephalad spread of analgesia. The lithotomy position had no effect on the spread of analgesia or anesthetic course of spinal anesthesia with hyperbaric tetracaine.