Spinal Anesthesia – Contraindications

Transcript

As with any other technique, there are potential contraindications. It is important to provide a thorough medical evaluation and communication between you, the patient, and the anesthesiologist to make sure that a spinal anaesthetic is the best choice for you. Contraindications include your refusal, local infection at the site of injection, bleeding disorders, low platelets, or the use of blood thinners, due to an increased risk of what we call a hematoma, a collection of blood around your spinal cord. There is also a risk in patients with increased intracranial pressure or any space occupying lesions of the brain, like brain tumors. There is also considerations for the anatomical disorders of the spine, including previous surgery in your back, like laminectomies or instrumentation of your back, and a history of allergic reactions to local anesthetics,