Regional anaesthesia in neonates: a narrative review

Abstract

The benefits of regional anaesthesia and the accompanying concerns of general anaesthesia in newborns make the former a safe and valuable addition. Multiple regional anaesthesia techniques, ranging from the central neuraxial blocks, truncal blocks, and peripheral nerve blocks are available. Empowering us to make the case to case decision to choose the most beneficial and safe block for the neonate. The applications of regional anaesthesia, over the period, have encompassed perioperative analgesia and therapeutic uses. With the addition of ultrasonography, neonatal regional anaesthesia has reached a fine amount of objectivity and accuracy. A trend of utilising regional blocks as the sole anaesthetic as against an adjuvant to general anaesthesia is setting in. In this review, we take a look at recent developments in this field in a generalised manner followed by dwelling into most of the commonly used blocks in daily practice. However, a detailed description of each block is beyond the scope of this review.