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REGIONAL ANESTHESIA

Interscalene and Infraclavicular Block for Bilateral Distal Radius Fracture

Konrad Maurer, MD^*, Georgios Ekatodramis, MD^*, Katharina Rentsch, MD, and Alain Borgeat, MD^*

Departments of *Anesthesiology and Clinical Chemistry, University Hospital Zurich/Balgrist, Zurich, Switzerland

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Alain Borgeat, Chief of Staff Anesthesiology, Orthopedic University Clinic of Zurich/Balgrist, Forchstrasse 340, CH-8008 Zurich, Switzerland. Address e-mail to aborgeat{at}balgrist.unizh.ch

Brachial plexus blockade is a suitable technique for surgery of the forearm, because it provides good intraoperative anesthesia as well as prolonged postoperative analgesia when long-acting local anesthetics are used. However, simultaneous blockade of both upper extremities has rarely been performed (1), because local anesthetic toxicity caused by the amount of drug needed to achieve an efficient block on both sides may be a problem. We report a case of successful bilateral brachial plexus block with ropivacaine in a patient with bilateral distal radius fracture, with each fracture requiring an open osteosynthesis.

IMPLICATIONS: This case report presents the performance of a simultaneous blockade of both upper extremities in a patient who sustained a bilateral distal radius fracture. The patient was known to be difficult to intubate and to have a severe hypersensitivity to opioids.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. D. Franco, Z. Salahuddin, and A. Rafizad Bilateral Brachial Plexus Block Anesth. Analg., February 1, 2004; 98(2): 518 - 520. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]