Abstract
BackgroundThe spread of spinal anesthesia was influenced by many factors, and the effect of body height on spinal anesthesia is still arguable. This study aimed to explore the impact of height on the spread of spinal anesthesia and the stress response in parturients.MethodsA total of ninety-seven parturients were allocated into two groups according to their height: the shorter group (body height was shorter than 158 cm) and taller group (body height was taller than 165 cm). Spinal anesthesia was performed with the same amount of 12 mg plain ropivacaine in mothers of different heights. The primary outcome of the study was the success or failure of the spinal anesthesia. The secondary outcomes of the study were stress response, time to T6 sensory level, the incidence of hypotension, the satisfaction of abdominal muscle relaxation and patient VAS scores.ResultsThe rate of successful spinal anesthesia in the shorter group was significantly higher than that in the taller group (p = 0.02). The increase of maternal cortisol level in the shorter group was lower than that in the taller group at skin closure (p = 0.001). The incidence of hypotension (p = 0.013), time to T6 sensory block (p = 0.005), the quality of abdominal muscle relaxation (p < 0.001), and VAS values in stretching abdominal muscles and uterine exteriorization (p < 0.001) in the shorter group were significantly different from those in the taller group. Multivariate analysis showed that vertebral column length (p < 0.001), abdominal girth (p = 0.022), amniotic fluid index (p = 0.022) were significantly associated with successful spinal anesthesia.ConclusionsIt’s difficult to use a single factor to predict the spread of spinal anesthesia. Patient’s vertebral column length, amniotic fluid index and abdominal girth were the high determinant factors for predicting the spread of spinal anesthesia.Trials registrationChiCTR-ROC-17012030 (Chictr.org.cn), registered on 18/07/2017.
Highlights
Spinal anesthesia is the preferred choice of anesthesia for cesarean section with its reliable and rapid effect
Two patients were excluded because of failed spinal anesthesia, two patients were excluded due to hemolysis in blood samples, and three were excluded because they declined to participate in the study (Fig. 1)
There was no difference between the shorter and taller groups in postoperative epinephrine, norepinephrine and dopamine in both maternal venous and cord blood. In this prospective observational study, a comparison of the parameters related to spinal anesthesia in pregnant women grouped by short and tall body height was performed to determine the effect of body height on the outcome of spinal anesthesia
Summary
Spinal anesthesia is the preferred choice of anesthesia for cesarean section with its reliable and rapid effect. It has many advantages over general anesthesia because it provides effective postoperative pain relief, keeps the parturients conscious of the delivery, and minimizes. She et al BMC Anesthesiology (2021) 21:298 the chance of maternal aspiration and difficult intubation. A large variable clinical dosage was used for spinal anesthesia in pregnant women with cesarean section [1]. Higher cephalad spread of spinal anesthesia may lead to excessive sympathetic nerve depression such as respiratory depression and severe hypotension in pregnant women. This study aimed to explore the impact of height on the spread of spinal anesthesia and the stress response in parturients
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
