Abstract Epidural blocks can be performed at any level from the cervical spine down to the sacral hiatus. A lumbar epidural can provide surgical anaesthesia and postoperative analgesia for sub-umbilical surgery, whereas a thoracic epidural will provide effective analgesia but not anaesthesia for thoracic and upper abdominal surgery. A bolus epidural injection will last 2e4 hours, using a long-…
Abstract There is conclusive evidence that regional anaesthesia provides better postoperative analgesia than systemic opioid techniques. Regional anaesthesia also has the potential to improve the functional outcome from surgery, although proving this in a clinically relevant way is challenging; many studies are inconclusive with methodological weaknesses making comparison difficult and offerin…