Anaesthesia for caesarean section in a patient with Klippel-Feil syndrome. The use of a microspinal catheter.

Abstract

A 34-year-old woman with severe kyphoscoliosis, an immobile cervical spine, and short stature due to the Klippel-Feil syndrome presented for elective Caesarean section. She expressed a strong desire to remain awake during the procedure. We chose a technique using a spinal microcatheter to provide spinal anaesthesia on the basis that incremental control of the dose of bupivacaine would reduce the risk of 'high' block. Awake inspection of the larynx was performed as a precaution in the event of respiratory embarrassment. A total of 6.25 mg heavy bupivacaine, 7.5 mg plain bupivacaine, and 10 micrograms fentanyl were administered over 20 min. This provided anaesthesia up to T5 without significant effects on respiratory or cardiovascular function. The patient was successfully delivered of a healthy boy.