Use of spinal anesthesia in laparoscopy for in vitro fertilization

Regional anesthesia, in selected cases, is a useful alternative method of providing anesthesia for the retrieval of oocytes when general anesthesia is not indicated. We report our experience in managing anesthesia in four patients in whom we used a subarachnoid block. Ova were obtained in three patients, and two became pregnant and delivered healthy full-term infants. Although the high pregnancy rate was noted with delight, it is clearly a statistical happenstance. It would be interesting, however, to carry out prospective studies to determine whether a relationship between the incidence of pregnancy and anesthetic method might exist.