Abstract
Epidural anesthesia has been reported to exert beneficial effects in surgical procedures. Over the past 3 years at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Washington, DC, thoracic surgical procedures have been done using a combined technique of epidural anesthesia with light general anesthesia. A retrospective review of this experience from January 1984 to November 1987 was done in 90 consecutive patients. Postoperative extubation of patients was accomplished immediately in 32%, within 1 hour in 34%, within 3 hours in 28%, within 18 hours in 4%, and was prolonged in only 1% of patients. Mortality was 2% and morbidity was 3%. This analysis indicates that the technique of epidural anesthesia with light general anesthesia provided satisfactory anesthesia with low mortality and morbidity in a high-risk group of patients undergoing surgery.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 415-418 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Archives of surgery |
Volume | 124 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Apr 1989 |
Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Surgery