Lignocaine 0.5% for spinal anaesthesia in gynaecological day surgery

Spinal anaesthesia with 5 ml of lignocaine 0.5% was administered to 30 women presenting for day case minor gynaecological surgery. They were allocated at random to receive the anaesthetic via either a 26-gauge Atraucan (pencil point) or a 29-gauge Spinocan (cutting bevel) spinal needle. Onset, duration, spread and regression of sensory and motor blockade, haemodynamic parameters and postoperative complications were studied. An upper sensory level of T10 (93.3%) was obtained in all except two patients. No patient complained of discomfort during surgery. The mean onset time was less than 8 min and the mean duration of sensory block was 32.5 min. All patients had complete return of motor power within 1 h and were discharged the same day. Only one patient had a transient episode of hypotension which was easily treated with intravenous fluids. There were no serious side effects seen postoperatively. We conclude that spinal anaesthesia with 5 ml of lignocaine 0.5% provides a useful alternative to general anaesthesia for day case minor gynaecological surgery.