A case of spinal anesthesia in a patient with progressive supranuclear palsy

Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is one of the rare diseases. PSP is characterized by oculomotor dysfunction, postural instability, akinesia, dysarthria, and dysphagia. The major cause of death in patients with PSP is aspiration pneumonia. Considering these complications, spinal anesthesia is useful in patients with PSP. However, the potential harmful effects of spinal anesthesia including neurotoxicity of local anesthetics and neurologic complications for patients with PSP are unclear, because there has been no report. Here, we present spinal anesthesia for a patient with PSP. An 80-year-old man with progressive oculomotor dysfunction, dysphagia, and history of repeated aspiration pneumonia was scheduled for inguinal hernia surgery. Acutely concerning about perioperative pulmonary complications, we performed spinal anesthesia. Fortunately, there was no complication associated with respiration or neural system during perioperative period. We hope our experience and case report will be helpful in specific perioperative anesthetic care for patients with PSP.