Neuroaxial anaesthesia in the presence of back tattoos (neuroaxial anaesthesia)
Introduction: Neuroaxial anaesthesia is used for pain control during or after surgery, to treat chronic pain states or to decrease labor and delivery pain in the parturient population. In recent years body tattooing on unusual sites such as the lumbar area have increased in popularity, and may be as...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Serbian Society of Anesthesiologists and Intensivists
2017-01-01
|
| Series: | Serbian Journal of Anesthesia and Intensive Therapy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/2217-7744/2017/2217-77441706139U.pdf |
| Summary: | Introduction: Neuroaxial anaesthesia is used for pain control during or after surgery, to treat chronic pain states or to decrease labor and delivery pain in the parturient population. In recent years body tattooing on unusual sites such as the lumbar area have increased in popularity, and may be associated with problems during performing neuroaxial anaesthesia technique. Until now, there were no systematic reviews nor randomized control studies that investigated, primarily, the performance of neuroaxial anaesthesia through a tattoo. Case report: We report a case of a 35-year-old lady who was admitted to our hospital for veins surgery. Preanaesthetic back examination revealed an extensive tattoo covering the entire of her lumbar region with no possibility of performing neuroaxial anaesthesia without penetrating pigment containing skin. It was decided to perform surgery under general anaesthesia. Discussion and conclusions: The main safety concern in performing neuraxial anaesthesia through a tattoo is in the presence of the pigment of the tattoo in the intrathecal or the epidural spaces. Although to date, there are no reported complications from inserting an epidural or spinal needle through the tattoo, this could be because in the past, fewer patients had tattoos involving the midline of the lower back. Also, complications may take time to develop and it may be too early to see these complications which may occur later in time. Therefore, because of safety concerns of introducing pigment into the intrathecal or epidural spaces with the use of hollow needles through tattoos during neuraxial anaesthesia, and no specific guidelines to follow, a safe individual approach should be attempted based on risk/benefit assessment for patient and experience of the anaesthesiologist. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 2217-7744 2466-488X |