[Cesarean section under spinal anesthesia for a patient with chronic renal failure]

A 37-year-old primipara was scheduled for cesarean section under spinal anesthesia in the 38th gestational week because of cephalo-pelvic disproportion. She had suffered from chronic renal failure since 27 years of age, and had been undergoing hemodialysis three times per week. The frequency of hemodialysis was increased to 4-6 times per week during pregnancy to maintain blood urea nitrogen and serum creatinine concentration below 60 mg.dl-1 and 6.0 mg.dl-1, respectively. Since she had no bleeding tendency, spinal anesthesia with 8 mg of tetracaine was successfully performed after hemodialysis eliminating only solute but not water in the morning of surgery and after infusion of 500 ml of acetated Ringer solution. Blood pressure and heart rate were stable during surgery. Monitoring of central venous pressure was useful for fluid management. A baby weighing 2,575 g with an Apgar Score of 8 at one minute and 9 at five minutes was delivered five minutes after the beginning the surgery. The mother recovered uneventfully and returned to regular hemodialysis on the first postoperative day. These findings suggest that with careful fluid management, spinal anesthesia can be safely performed for cesarean section, for patients undergoing hemodialysis.