[Combined spinal-epidural anesthesia for intra-abdominal gynecological surgeries]

Forty-five patients scheduled for intra-abdominal gynecological surgeries, ranging in age from 30 to 60 years, were anesthetized with combined spinal-epidural (CSE) method using combined spinal-epidural needles inserted at the L2-3 interspace. Ten minutes after intrathecal administration of 0.4% isobaric tetracaine solution (2.5 ml) the upper level of analgesia was examined by pin prick method and the patients were divided into the group A (N = 7; anesthetic level > or = Th7), B (N = 7; Th8-10) and C (N = 31; Th11-L1) according to their anesthetic levels. Target anesthetic level (Th4-7) was obtained in group B by peridural administration of 2% mepivacaine in a dose of 5 ml and the surgery was performed. However, in group C, mepivacaine 7 ml was insufficient to obtain the target anesthetic level and additional mepivacaine was necessary for the surgery. In group A, no mepivacaine was used in the first hour of the surgery. In all patients, except one in group C, in whom general anesthesia was used after insufficient segmental analgesia, anesthesia was maintained by the CSE technique. We concluded that adequate anesthetic level for the intra-abdominal surgery can be obtained by intrathecal isobaric tetracaine administration combined with peridural mepivacaine of a dose calculated according to the anesthetic level ten minutes after the spinal block.